GTCO Autism Confab: Lagos First Lady, Others Advocate Inclusiveness For ASD Persons

By Akinwale Kasali

The First Lady of Lagos State,  Ibijoke Claudiana Sanwo-Olu, has called for more support for people with Autism Spectrum Disorder, ASD, to enable them achieve their potentials.

The wife of the Lagos State governor was among stakeholders at the 14^th Annual Guaranty Trust Company, GTCO, conference in Lagos who advocated support and inclusiveness for persons living with autism.

The confab tagged “ A Spectrum of Possibilities” was organised by the financial services giant with the support of the European Union, EU, to rally support for autism patients, and to draw attention to the challenges they face in their daily interactions in their various communities.

Sanwo-Olu said visual aids should be provided for ASD persons to make their lives easier.

She said, “Assume that the whole community has pictorials all over the place, like in our schools, mosques, churches, and universities. It will encourage more people to take part in these possibilities we are talking about.”

She also encouraged parents to love ASDs children despite the challenges they face in racing them, saying all what caregivers need is to follow expert advice.

“We need to spread love for children with autism. I must applaud parents, caregivers, and teachers for the wonderful work that they are doing to ensure that children with autism thrive. It’s not easy to care for our special needs children, as we need to adapt alternative communication skills and teaching styles to enable us to communicate with them”, Sanwo Olu said

According to experts, persons living with the condition face stigmatization as they struggle to integrate themselves into the broader society.

Speaking at the conference, the Group Chief Executive Officer, GTCO, Segun Agbaje, pledged his continued support for the Orange Ribbon Initiative, an initiative aimed at supporting persons with disabilities.

The chief executive of the financial behemoth stated that the annual GTCO Autism Conference, designed to amplify the challenges faced by persons with the condition is a major part of that support to help them live a normal life.

Agbaje said, “A major component of this initiative is the annual GTCO Autism Conference, designed to amplify the challenges faced by individuals with ASD and provide practical support to help them integrate successfully into society.”

Also speaking, Eniola Lahanmi, a Speech and Language Therapist who who spoke on the topic ‘Fundamental Communication Strategies for Children with Autism’, said that there is no limitations to what people in the spectrum can achieve, what they need basically, she stated, is community support to make them effective.

Lahanmi stressed that the sky is their limit, so long the society can focus on their strength, adding that more awareness should be created to highlight the challenges facing ASD persons in the country.

She said: “Over the years, there have been a lot of awareness, and a lot has been achieved, but we aren’t resting on our oars as there is still a lot of awareness to be done in the hinterlands.

“It is necessary for us to give Autistic Persons a sense of belonging and put aside unnecessary stigmatization. Let us provide an avenue for them where they would thrive, and achieve their goals”.

Similarly, Lanre Duyile, a certified behaviour analyst from, Behaviourprise College of Business and Health Studies, Canada, urged the society to focus on their abilities rather than their disabilities. There is no limitations to what ASD persons could achieved when they are provided the necessary support, he said.

“We focus on their strength, though, we all have limitations, because nobody is perfect. Folks with Autism have limitations but we work on them to be independent and do great things.  We just need to understand them, show them love, encourage them and always see the possibilities in them for them to thrive.

“People living with Autism needs inclusivity and Autism is in three phase, Mild, Moderate and Severe, when we talk about inclusion we need to understand them and their diagnosis”, he said.