The visit of Norwegian Deputy Foreign Minister Raymond Johansen was one of the highlights at the opening day of an education project for Iraqi children in Beirut.
09/04/2008 ::
Mr. Raymond Johansen visited the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) Education project for Iraqi refugee children in Beirut during his trip in the Middle East.
The center is situated in Bourj al Barajneh in Beirut, providing interim education for Iraqi children, enabling them to continue school after loosing years of education because of war.
“Education is an important way to protect young people so that they don’t find themselves in dangerous jobs. The international community has an important role to play, in making sure they can learn skills to lead a good life when they return to Iraq”, Mr. Johansen said in his speech.
Mr. Johansen also announced that the Norwegian Foreign Ministry has granted the NRC with USD 830.000 (NOK 4,4 million) for a youth project for Iraqi refugees.
Among the other guests at the event were also the Norwegian chargé d’affaires Aud Lise Norheim, the Iraqi ambassador Jawad Hakiri and the UNHCR-representative Stephane Jaquemet.
Jaquemet stressed the importance of education to rebuild Iraq in his speech, while Hakiri also took the opportunity to greet the refugee children personally.
The children at the center had also practiced a song that they performed for the audience.
The highlight of the event was the unveiling of a wall-painting, which all the refugee children at the center has participated in. Mr. Johansen also received a picture of the wall, signed by the artists themselves, and got to visit them in their classrooms.
By the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Beirut