18 June 2017 – Amman, Jordan: His Excellency Mr Hadithah Khreisha, Minister of Youth, today signed an agreement with Generations For Peace to expand the Jordan Social Cohesion in Host Communities Programme. In his first official visit to the Generations For Peace headquarters, he met with HRH Prince Feisal Al Hussein, Founder and Chairman of Generations For Peace, and discussed the importance of the programme. The agreement discusses the expansion of the Social Cohesion Programme to additional communities with the support of UNICEF and the cooperation of the Ministry of Youth.
During the signing of the agreement, HRH highlighted the importance of continuing and strengthening the cooperation between NGOs and the government to maximise the benefit of programmes reaching Jordanian youth in all the governorates, with this agreement representing a model for further cooperation.
The programme will expand to 40 youth centres and aims to benefit more than 71,000 youth in Amman, Ajloun, Balqa, Irbid, Jerash, Karak, Madaba, Mafraq, Zarqa and Ma’an over the next 12 months.
H.E Mr. Khreisha said: “The development and expansion of the Social Cohesion Programme confirms the Ministry of Youth’s commitment to empowering youth in all the governorates of the Kingdom, which this partnership will enable by sharpening their skills, strengthening their role as leaders and active citizens, and enhancing cohesion in their communities.”
As the Syrian crisis enters the seventh year, expansion of the social cohesion programme, with funding support from UNICEF, will aid in the next phase of social integration of the Syrian refugee youth. Generations For Peace has trained 10 Field Coordinators and 200 Youth Centre staff, ready to start the new programme activities after Ramadan. The innovative sport and arts activities, over a series of sessions providing 44 hours of quality participation time for each youth participant, foster greater engagement, acceptance and trust amongst Syrian refugee and Jordanian host community youth within the kingdom.
The Minister of Youth’s visit concluded with his attendance at the annual General Assembly meeting and the annual Iftar hosted by HRH Prince Feisal Al Hussein.
