SHARJAH, 26th October, 2026 (WAM) -- Sharjah City for Humanitarian Services (SCHS) is taking part in the upcoming Sharjah International Book Fair with a pavilion built around knowledge, awareness and community engagement.
The centrepiece is the eighth instalment of its “60 Seconds” series, which this time looks at adolescence and autism spectrum disorder. The aim is to present specialist information in a short, simple format that people can easily use.
The series is a set of knowledge cards on the many sides of life for teenagers with autism. These include the physical, emotional and social changes of adolescence, mental health, anxiety and burnout, identity and self-esteem, friendship, bullying and neurodiversity, and independence and daily living skills.
It also looks at the move into working life, covering workplace training and community experience, supported employment, and the role of technology in building independence. The common thread is helping young people carry skills learnt in education into everyday life, the community and the job market.
Through the series, the city wants the discussion of autism to reach beyond childhood and span the whole of life. It places particular emphasis on the specific needs of adolescence, and on adulthood, with its questions of independence, inclusion, education, rehabilitation and work. The organisation stresses that people with autism have needs, abilities and ambitions that evolve with age, and so require continued support, services and opportunities to take an active part in society.
SCHS launched “60 Seconds” in 2018, and each edition contains 20 or more cards with QR codes linking to short videos that offer practical guidance. The first edition focused on motor therapy and was followed by editions on speech, language, hearing and child development, then a booklet on communication in children with autism, and later one on occupational therapy. In 2023, a new edition on motor therapy for children added assessments and exercises for families, teachers and specialists. The sixth edition, “Helping Your Child with Early Cognitive Development”, launched in 2024 at the 43rd Sharjah International Book Fair, and the seventh, on swallowing difficulties and drooling, followed in 2025 at the 44th edition of the fair.
Mona Abdulkarim Al Yafei, Director General of SCHS, said the city’s presence at the fair extends its role in spreading knowledge and community awareness. She described knowledge as one of the most important tools for empowerment, and the fair as a valuable space to meet, interact and exchange expertise.
She also cited prevalence figures to underline the point. According to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (2025), autism occurs in roughly one in 31 people. Outside the United States, the American Psychiatric Association’s DSM-5-TR (2022) suggests a rate of about one in 100. With figures like these, and a rising trend, she said, everyone has a stake in the issue.
Al Yafei added that the pavilion is meant to be more than a display of publications. It is intended as a human, educational experience reflecting the city’s commitment to awareness, empowerment, respect for difference, and independence and community participation for people with disabilities. The city also hopes to bring disability issues further into the cultural scene and to open new dialogue on autism, neurodiversity, mental health and independence, in line with Sharjah’s standing as a hub for culture, books and knowledge.