KUWAIT: Zain, the leading digital service provider in Kuwait, announced its strategic partnership with the World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) second Forum for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) 2020. The event, which comes in collaboration with the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) and the Public Authority of the Disabled, is held on 20-23 January 2019.

Zain's strategic partnership comes as part of its Group-wide 'WE ABLE' initiative, which mainly aims at complementing the company's gender diversity and inclusion program by enriching disability inclusion in the workplace. The immediate aim of the disability inclusion initiative is to increase the number of people with disabilities within the Zain workforce, ensure all training programs are disability inclusive, guarantee that accessibility across all Zain touchpoints are disability inclusive, and identify innovative and assistive technologies enabling more people with disabilities to join the company and succeed.

Zain hosted a special session and workshop at the Zain Innovation Center (ZINC) in the company's main headquarters in Shuwaikh, where Usability Testing Expert Zeliha (Zel) Iscel discussed many topics related to enhancing web accessibility to the visually impaired and people with special needs. The session also discussed the latest technologies and tools that are used to make the web more accessible in line with the World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) global web standards.

The W3C second Forum for the GCC 2020 will also include many special sessions and workshops featuring local and international speakers, including a special session by Zain. The forum will also feature a Hackathon challenge that focuses on developing software tools that allow people with special needs to access the web.

Zain is keen on reinforcing its partnerships with the many local and international entities that cater to people with special needs within the community all year round. The company is proud to have partnered with this initiative that caters to this valued segment of the society, especially with regards to making the web a more accessible place for them.

Zain constantly shoulders initiatives that work towards enhancing the society's welfare. The company's long-term cooperation with the various private and public entities that cater to people with special needs springs from its belief in the importance of having a positive print by supporting and launching initiatives that cater to various interests of the community.