In pictures: Special needs driver an exemplary example in the UAE

“I was really surprised when I got a call from Abu Dhabi police inviting me to attend the ceremony,” said the 40-year-old Moroccan driver.

“I asked Lt Col Jamal Al Ameri ‘Why me?’ because I know there must be many other safe drivers out there.”

Mr Al Miskini, a swimming coach from Morocco, contracted polio at the age of two, resulting in a paralysed right leg. He wears a steel brace that locks in at the knee and continues the length of his leg.

His disability never kept him from pursuing his passion for swimming and para-rowing competitions, and his desire to overcome restrictions on his mobility.

He arrived in the UAE in 2010 as a member of the swimming team of the Abu Dhabi Sports Club with Special Needs, which is under the Zayed Higher Organisation of Humanitarian Care and Special Needs, and became the swimming coach two years later.

After two years of struggling to hail cabs, he took driving lessons at the Emirates Driving Company in Mussafah, which offers training for people with special needs on modified vehicles.

For Mr Al Maskini, keeping his eyes focused on the road, maintaining a safe distance and respecting traffic laws and other road users have kept him safe on the road.

Omar Al Miskini has been accident-free for two years – a feat that has not gone unnoticed. All Photos by Silvia Razgova / The National