The genesis of Manzil was a non-profit support group called ‘Special Families Support’
which
was started by our Director
Dr Ayesha Husaini on 9th December, 1999. The group grew to over 200 members and is one
of
GCC’s oldest non-profit groups
focusing on social inclusion of people of determination.
The support group blossomed into “Manzil”, a non-profit Center that was officially
inaugurated on February 7th 2005 by
Sheikha Jameela Mohammed Al Qasimi, Director General, Sharjah City for Humanitarian
Services.
Meaning “Destination” in Urdu or “Home” in Arabic, Manzil catered to students with
cognitive
disabilities making it a
highly qualitative center with a significantly low student to staff ratio. The average
experience of our teaching staff
in the disability arena was over 13 years.
The organization is now spreading its wings further and is crossing international
borders,
doing inclusion research &
consultancy and is also involved as an intellectual partner with Governmental entities.
Manzil’s Ambassador of Inclusion
is Chaica S. Al Qassimi. She is also a Self-advocate & representative of Inclusion MENA.
In 2022 Manzil expanded both its vision and its premises. The ideology of the Center is
no
longer limited to people of
determination. The Manzil Centers now operating from both Sharjah and Dubai are aimed at
ALL
learners.
Manzil Center Sharjah is focused on using the Arts
to provide support to learners
to
focus on their skills whilst
Manzil Occupational Skills Center Dubai
primarily
caters to skills training of
young
adults so they can step into the
professional world with independence and dignity.
Manzil professionals using their almost two decades of experience in the field of
training and hiring people of
determination now share their expertise by providing consultancy services to
educational
institutions and business
houses for Diversity Equity and Inclusion.