Dubai: The UAE on Monday joined countries across the globe to mark World Autism Awareness Day even as the disorder reached "alarming" proportions in the region.

"One child in every 88 [in the UAE] is born autistic," said Mohammad Al Emadi, director general of the Dubai Autism Centre. He said it was important to make people aware about the disorder to help in early diagnosis and intervention.

"We are on the roads, we are in the malls," he said about the awareness campaign, which runs throughout April. The catch phrase for the campaign is "Accept, Embrace, Empower".

The UAE's Burj Al Arab will be lit up blue on Monday, along with other iconic global landmarks as Empire State building, Opera House in Sydney and the Christ the Redeemer Statue in Rio de Janeiro, to observe the Day.

The private sector has also joined in and Enoc and Eppco stations have set up collection boxes across its 40 petrol stations in Dubai. Noaman Al Saleh, media relations manager of the Emirates National Oil Company (Enoc) said the drive will continue past Ramadan. "The target is to help gather sufficient funds for a new autism centre," he said.

The present Centre in Al Satwa can only take in less than 50 children, while there is a huge waiting list. The New Centre would be able to accommodate 150 children.

Parents of autistic children said it was very expensive to send their children to these special centres. Al Emadi said autistic children are normal-looking children but with behavioural problems. They need special therapy and putting them into a normal education institution was not feasible, he said.

Abu Dhabi has plans to build three more autism centres in the capital and Al Ain.

Autism is an incurable and complex neuro-biological disorder that affects the communication, behaviour and social relationships of the patient. The child faces difficulty with non-verbal communication, such as gestures and facial expressions. There is hesitation regarding social interaction and the child lacks the power of imagination

Dr Ayesha Abdullah, managing director of Dubai Healthcare City (DHCC), said: "Understanding the needs of an autistic child is just the beginning of their development. For parents, there are many other challenges that appear as the child gets older such as their behaviour, sibling interaction, finding a suitable school, health and hygiene, screenings, vaccinations and nutrition."

The DHCC has joined in with various other institutions to mark World Autism Awareness Day.