(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Queen Rania of Jordan to deliver keynote speech on opening day of conference on refugee children on October 15.
The upcoming international conference on refugee children in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region to be held in Sharjah will feature over 300 international personalities concerned with the issues of refugee children.
The Organising Committee of the ‘Investing In the Future: Protecting Refugee Children and Adolescents - Mena’ said the conference being held under the patronage of His Highness Dr Shaikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah will take place on October 15-16.
On invitation from Shaikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi Wife of Dr Shaikh Sultan and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee (UNHCR) Eminent Advocate for Refugee Children Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan will deliver a keynote speech on the opening day.
Antonio Guterres United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees; Shaikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan Minister of Culture Youth and Community Development; Dr Nabil Elaraby Secretary-General of the League of Arab States; Pierre Krähenbühl Commissioner-General of UNRWA; and Lynne Featherstone DFID minister UK will be among the many international personalities who will attend the event.
Mariam Al Hammadi Director of Salam Ya Seghar said the conference which is being held for the first time outside the UNHCR headquarters in Geneva will develop the necessary mechanisms to ensure the protection of refugee children and youth in the Mena region.
The conference will also discuss how to uphold the basic rights of the children provide them shelter food healthcare psychological rehabilitation and education. In addition it will ensure that refugee children get the necessary legal documents and access to actively participate in community.
Protecting the youth
The sessions will discuss how children and youth can protect themselves; education issues for refugees; role of family and community in protecting refugee children; and will also look at the role of the private sector and media in providing support and protection to children.
Al Hammadi said a Youth Forum will be held on the sidelines of the conference. “The Youth Forum aims to spread awareness among youth on the refugee issues in the Mena region and highlight a number of important initiatives in refugee protection in the region.”
Mohammed Abu Asaker Public Information and Communications officer at UNHCR said the number of refugees in Mena is over 3.8 million. Of this over three million are Syrians and 1.8 million children. The number is expected to reach two million children in the coming two months.
More than half of them are of school-going age but most of them have started working with no access to school or education. Asaker pointed out that over 8000 Syrian children are not accompanied by their parents and are identified as separated from their immediate family.
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