Celebrating ‘Youth Open Day’ and the NET MED Youth Project Achievements in Jordan

Under the Royal Patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Faisal Bin Hussein, the UNESCO Amman office hosted a celebratory event honoring the successes of youth under the regional UNESCO-led and EU-funded “Networks of Mediterranean Youth (NET-MED Youth)” project.

Her Royal Highness Princess Ayah Bint Faisal, representing HRH Prince Faisal Bin Hussein, spoke passionately, saying, “I believe strongly that we must empower the voices of youth. We must ensure that young people throughout the region are provided with the multi-faceted training, skills and support required to engage as active citizens and lead the global movement towards the creation of a peaceful world”.

H.E. Andrea Matteo Fontana, the EU ambassador to Jordan, was also in attendance and addressed the audience. “The wide engagement that the EU has towards youth in Jordan harmoniously links to the priorities of the National Youth Strategy, such as entrepreneurship, education, good governance, citizenship, employment and prevention of violent extremism”. H.E. also announced an upcoming EU-funded and UNESCO led project focused on “media information and literacy” which targets youth and their ethical use of social media literacy”, set to begin soon.

Representing UNESCO in Jordan, Ms. Costanza Farina, reaffirmed the NET-MED Youth project’s commitment to unifying youth efforts and harnessing their collective potential. Referencing the ambitious 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Ms. Farina stated, “As the world embarks on this new journey towards Sustainable Development, we must seize the unique opportunity to highlight the essential role of youth. We must reaffirm our commitment to work in a concerted and effective manner towards contributing to sustainable development, and towards achieving all 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”.

Following these high-level speeches, the audience enjoyed presentations from key NET-MED Youth project partners and contributors, summarizing the achievements of some of the initiatives supported by the three-year project.

H.E .Wafa’ bani Mustafa, Member of Parliament, Dr. Salma Nims, Secretary General of the JNCW, and Dr. Amer bani Amer, General Director of Al-Hayat Center for Civil Society Development, participated in a interactive panel discussion, moderated by Dr. Sami Hourani, Founder and CEO of FORSA. The three senior panelists had all travelled to New York to support the presentation at the UN High Level Political Forum of Jordan’s Voluntary National Review, providing a snapshot of where Jordan stood in July of last year as compared with the global 2030 Agenda and charting the way forward. The panelists expanded further on the meaning of this major initiative for young people, their vision for SDG attainment in Jordan, discussing as well decentralization efforts in Jordan and gender issues, with relation to SDG 5. A lively exchange followed with youth from the audience as they interacted with the panel, posing articulate questions that sparked debate.

Throughout the day, nearly 200 attendees attended the celebrations. Participants were also treated to a youth cultural performance as dancers took the stage to perform a modern Dabkeh rendition and youth and other attendees spent the remainder of the afternoon networking with each other. Thirty booths enacted around the venue showcased youth initiatives from all across Jordan, with a focus on the 2030 Agenda and attendees circulated throughout, further acquainting themselves with the initiatives and working to forge new synergies.