UN Holds Appointing Ceremony for ‘Shabab Balad’ Initiative Ambassadors

The United Nations held this week an appointing ceremony for the ‘Shabab Balad’ initiative promoters in Egypt.

On the day of the event, a face-to-face ceremony was held with Covid-19 prevention measures. Renowned young actor Ahmed Dash alongside a number of young celebrities and sports champions in Egypt officially took the helm as Ambassadors for the ‘Shabab Balad’ initiative in Egypt.

At the appointment ceremony, the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Egypt Elena Panova said: "We are pleased to have a distinguished voice from the young generation in the art field to support the message of “Shabab Balad” such as the young actor Dash.

"We are confident that his joining the initiative will have a positive impact that enhances the interaction of young people in Egypt with the project," she added.

Meanwhile, Jeremy Hopkins, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Representative in Egypt, said: “Raising awareness of the initiative requires the solidarity of the various parties in society, especially the influential voice of young people."

"We are delighted that actor Ahmed Dash has joined the “Shabab Balad” initiative, and we hope that more influencers and thought leaders will join to deliver the initiative’s message,” Hopkins who handed each member letter of appointment said beaming.

On the other hand, the newly appointed ambassadors expressed their happiness in assuming this role and indicated their keenness to convey the message of ‘Shabab Balad’ and to support its work for the benefit of young people in Egypt.

The Shabab Balad initiative is an Egyptian version of UNICEF’s international Generation Unlimited Initiative, which was launched by the UN in 2018 and operates in over 50 countries across the world.

The event that took place in Cairo was also attended by Dr. Ghada Makady, the Partnerships and Generation Unlimited Lead at UNICEF and the Director of the “Shabab Balad” initiative, and a number of high-ranking representatives of the United Nations’ offices in Egypt.

According to UNICEF, the Shabab Balad Initiative is the first offspring of the Generation Unlimited Initiative in the region.

“Shabab Balad is the first public-private partnership platform for youths that was created to give young people a platform to express themselves and find opportunities,” UNICEF explained.

It’s worth mentioning that the theme of this initiative is “every boy and girl in the world have the opportunity to attend school, learn, or train so they can have a suitable job by 2030.”