‘IF THERE IS A WILL, THERE IS A WAY’

Tuned to the radio, I was sitting in my office, the Ministry of Information, when a voice struck me as familiar. I tried to pay more attention and it didn’t take me long to recognize the voice as of some one I knew back in the university. I immediately went to the studio to see who was sitting at the anchor’s place. I was astonished. The voice I heard was his voices, Tedros’s voice. Tedros is one of the graduating class of 2004, who has been doing his national service with his other colleagues in the Ministry. What astonished me was the fact that unlike any other ordinary personnel at the Ministry, Tedros is visually impaired.

Tedros Marcos was born in Assab in 1979. He lost his sight at the age four. He came to Asmara for his education and started his education in Abraha Bahta School, a school for the visually impaired. He then continued his junior education in Natsenet and completed his secondary school in Red Sea Comprehensive Secondary School. After taking the National Examination, he joined the University of Asmara and studied Linguistics.

In his academic life, Tedros was successful especially prior to the tertiary level. “We had all the necessary provisions of books and other facilities for the visually impaired, so I was able to accumulate equal knowledge with sighted students,” says Tedros. “But,” added Tedros, “the academic atmosphere in the university slightly changes. You don’t have enough facilities for your study.”

The major challenges facing blind students in campus include lack of enough Brailled textbooks for reference and limited number of Braille computer terminals. But

the introduction of new equipments with inclusion modern technologies to the resource center for the blind, there is a great hope of solving this problem.
“In spite of these difficulties, thanks to the help from my colleagues especially the 99 batch and the access to the specialized modern technologies through the Abrha Bahta School, I managed to pursue my education,” acknowledged Tedros.

Nevertheless, these are not the only problems for the visual impaired students. They had to come over various other difficulties including the environment, which is basically designed for the sighted. However, despite all these, Tedros and the like, were able to find their own way in studying the places remarkably quickly.
This is always a curious and astonishing fact that amazes any member of the university community. When I asked him if it was some kind of gift, he simply forwarded his answer with a saying: “If there is a will, there is a way.”

Being blind or not does not make that much difference in performance. It only accounts on the initiatives you take in undrtaking a certain job. That is what every one, Tedros and the like, agree on. This belief has enabled him to work as a journalist to broadcast programs equally with the sighted.
“It is noting more serious. It only depends on your ego. You have to believe that you can execute your intended goal,” said Tedros.

In addition to creating their own way in solving their difficulties, visually impaired people should also develop good rapport with their classmates or work mates in order to participate in the social life.