[2014 GITC Participant] Keo from Cambodia (Global IT Leader) > Participants' Story Global IT Challenge

My name is Keo Chan Outdam. I am 33 years old. I was born as one of the fraternal twins (1 boy, 1 girl). My parents were farmers in a remote village in Banteay Meanchey province. Poor living conditions and malnutrition caused my younger twin sister to get sick and died at the age of seven months. Furthermore, at three years old, the doctor diagnosed me with polio. Since then, my legs began to weaken gradually until I was unable to walk, and my legs became numb and small. When I could no longer walk, I used a wheelchair. My parents were very sympathetic to me; they always comforted and encouraged me to try to walk with crutches until I was successful. When I was 6 years old, I went to a primary school about 4 km from home. My father took me to school every day. The challenge for me, at the time, was discrimination from the people around me, but I persevered until I finished primary school. When I entered high school, I encountered some other obstacles such as difficulty traveling; classrooms did not have facilities for persons with disabilities, such as ramps and railings. Due to the commitment and encouragement of my parents, I worked hard to graduate from high school. One day I heard about announcement of the Global IT Challenge for Youth with Disabilities in Korea. At that time, I applied and passed the national exam, then went on to competition in Korea and won international awards between ASEAN countries. I was very happy and proud that I had won such a international award for my country, and what excites me is that the Royal Government has encouraged and provided me job as officer in the Disability Action Council of the Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation with all winning team members. The work there has taught me about the field of disability and given me the opportunity to contribute to other people with disabilities. It is also an institution that plays an important role in facilitating and addressing the challenges that arise for all people with disabilities. 

When I arrived in Korea, I was very excited because it was my first visit. Upon arrival, I was immediately impressed by the cold, snowy weather. The city was beautiful and clean; the people were friendly and non-discriminating to persons with disabilities. Especially in public places, there were facilities for persons with disabilities, such as staircase railings, ramps, and braille. We had dinner together, accompanied by fun programs as well as self-introductions and sharing experiences with one another, under the special care of the Korean volunteer youth group. What stood out to me was that the exam room was fully equipped with modern technologies that allowed candidates to take the exam according to their disabilities. In addition, the committee gave accurate and precise scores. As a result, I won two gold and two silver medals, and the most exciting award was winning Global IT Leader. This is a source of pride for me and the nation as a whole. What I will never forget also is the joint trips to tourist attractions and resorts in Busan. It's so fun and different from what I have experienced before. Simultaneously, we saw genuine smiles that emphasized indiscrimination, friendliness, and anti-racialism through giving each other souvenirs to strengthen the friendship, love, and affection among all ASEAN countries. Finally, I would like to thank and show my appreciation to Korea as the host who created this program to strengthen friendship and solidarity, and to share good experiences among the ASEAN countries as well as the whole world. 

All these good experiences that I have gained, it has changed my mindset to look at new perspectives to further strengthen my abilities and share good ideas with the next generation to inspire them to move the disability sector forward.