Amid much fanfare, Education Above All (EAA) Foundation programme Reach Out to Asia (ROTA), officially launched the 11th edition of the annual Empower Youth Conference 2019 last week, at the Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) Student Center.
The event was inaugurated in the presence of the EAA Foundation CEO Dr Ali Bin Smaikh Al Marri, also the Chairman of the National Human Rights Committee (NHRC), and Dr hc Hafsat Abiola-Costello, Executive President of Woman in Africa initiative.
Offering youth another exciting opportunity, Empower 2019 was aimed at emphasising the role of youth as agents and catalysts for peace and dialogue for sustainable development, and promises to be the ideal platform for youth to find their own voices. This year’s theme was ‘Youth – A Catalyst for Peace and Dialogue for Development’.
The theme bears greater importance in today’s current state of affairs as the United Nations has proclaimed 2019 as the International Year of Moderation in an effort to amplify the voices of moderation through the promotion of dialogue, tolerance, understanding and cooperation.
EAA strongly believes that this theme has the potential to provide powerful and meaningful experiential learning opportunities for local and international participants. This proposed theme aligns perfectly with the Social Development pillar of Qatar National Vision 2030, which promotes tolerance, constructive dialogue and openness towards other cultures, dialogue among civilisations and coexistence between different religions and cultures.
According to Associate Executive Director of ROTA Abdulla Abdulla, this year’s conference is intended to harness the youth’s enthusiasm and creativity, with the support of ROTA staff, which will greatly contribute in meeting Qatar’s development goals and Qatar National Vision 2030.
EMPOWER 2019 serves as an important forum to promote the importance of partnership and engagement with the youth sector in peacebuilding. Check out this link for more information about the event.
