Children with autism  participated for the first time in the International Marathon of Rabat on March 5. 

A number of organizations supporting autistic children from various Moroccan cities  took part in the third edition of the International Marathon of Rabat. The initiative aimed to raise awareness of this segment of the Moroccan population and also to express support for the autistic community throughout Morocco.

The children with autism who participated in Rabat International Marathon ran alongside amateur runners from different cities of Morocco.

There are no official statistics about the number of children with autism in Morocco, and  cultural taboos make it quite difficult to count the cases of autism , as the condition remains a taboo and parents usually avoid presenting their children as autistic.

According to statistics obtained in 2009 from the International Association for the Defense of the Fundamental Rights of Children with Autism, there are between 338,000 and 563,000 autistic people in the world, most of them children.

Source :Morocco World News