Canada honours UNRWA students who took part in women’s empowerment programme

AMMAN — The Canadian embassy in Amman on Sunday honoured UNRWA students who took part in the “I am a Young Female Leader” programme at the Preparatory Girls School in Irbid camp.

The award ceremony, carried out in cooperation with UNRWA, was attended by the Canadian Ambassador to Jordan Peter MacDougall, as well as members of the community, according to a joint statement sent to The Jordan Times.

The female leadership initiative aimed to empower young girls by promoting them to positions of leadership, in addition to increasing public awareness among parents and teachers on how to protect girls from discrimination and violence.

The statement added that the programme was implemented in six schools run by UNRWA in Jordan between November and December of last year.

“Canada sees gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls as key Canadian values, and believes that these values are critical to the achievement of poverty reduction, peace and security and inclusive, sustainable economic growth,” MacDougall said during a speech given at the ceremony.

According to the statement, 25 students and teachers from the six schools took part in workshops on female leadership in health, hygiene, environment and gender-based violence.

Female students also completed 50 creative projects on short story writing, song, art and sketch performances.

The Director of UNRWA Operations in Jordan Roger Davies expressed his gratitude to the Canadian embassy in Amman for its continued support of UNRWA.

Davies added that “UNRWA believes that education is not just about passing exams but also [about] acquiring skills that young students need to understand the world they live in and promote values like of tolerance and gender equality”.

The programme was funded by the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives and implemented by the Try Centre for Training and Education, according to the statement.

Canada’s contribution to UNRWA in 2017 totalled $19.7 million, and in light of the agency’s financial shortfall last year, increased its planned contribution by $10 million.