Prince Charles visits Zaatari camp, village

AMMAN — Charles, Prince of Wales, paid a visit to the Zaatari Refugee Camp in Mafraq, some 80km northeast of Amman, on Sunday.

During the visit, the prince, accompanied by British International Development Secretary Justine Greening checked on the situation of refugees and services they receive while touring a number of care facilities at the camp.

During a visit to a World Food Programme distribution centre, he met with a team of volunteers from Relief International, which partners with UNCHR in Jordan to provide services to camp residents.

The prince also visited a youth centre affiliated with the International Medical Corps and supported by UNICEF to provide protection and psychosocial support to youth and children aged between eight and 18, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

At the centre, Prince Charles listened to the stories of several refugees and the difficulties they faced during their journey to Jordan.

In addition, he paid a visit to a community police station in camp and a school at Zaatari village, where he met community leaders who briefed him on the impact of the refugee influx on host communities in the town.

British Ambassador in Amman Peter Millett, UNHCR Representative to Jordan Andrew Harper and Brig. Gen. Wadah Hmoud, director of the Syrian Refugees Affairs Directorate, accompanied the prince during the visit, according to Petra.

Also on Sunday, the Prince of Wales attended the “Learning from Experience” event, which brought together “some of the most talented youth from across UK-funded programmes” that offer training opportunities leading into productive employment, a British embassy statement said. 

Participants at the activity were able to meet with CEOs, practise interviews with HR managers, test their leadership and entrepreneurship skills and gain experience using the latest technology which is shaping the way business is done and the skills that applicants need, according to the embassy.

Speaking at the event, Prince Charles thanked His Majesty King Abdullah “for agreeing to become the Royal patron of the Mosaic International Leadership Programme 2015”, which is delivered by the prince’s charitable initiative Mosaic, according to the embassy.  

The programme “brings together 80 young leaders from around the world to develop their leadership skills, inspire thinking about global issues and equip them to become involved in their local communities,” the statement said. 

Also attending the activity, Millett said young people are the future. 

“I am very pleased that UKaid and [Prince Charles’] Charities are supporting employability and entrepreneurship in Jordan,” the statement quoted him as saying.

This year’s Mosaic International Leadership Programme will be delivered in partnership with the King Abdullah II Fund for Development (KAFD), with the two-week opening residential course scheduled to be hosted in Amman in May this year.

“There comes no better time than this to scale up the design and implementation of youth empowerment tools for a better future, as a way to respond to terrorism, barbaric radicals and extremism and to protect our youth from nihilist  ideologies,” Senator Imad Fakhoury, who chairs KAFD’s board of trustees, said at the event, according to a KAFD statement.

“Today, Jordan has a group of youth and partners, who together will work on delivering a brighter future and ensuring that our youth receive the best opportunities and skills to battle the challenges that face them,” the statement quoted Fakhoury as saying. 

“Together,  they will build a stronger, more capable generation of citizens who are able to stand in the face of extremism and radicalism with their most lethal weapon — their acquired  knowledge and skills — so they can build a stronger  economy and be more active and engaged  citizens,” he added.

Prince Charles also announced the commencement of the “Prince’s Trust Get Into Programme” in Jordan, delivered by his charity, the Prince’s Trust International in partnership with KAFD as part of their Darb programme, and in cooperation with the Business Development Centre and INJAZ, the British embassy said.  

“This project will offer young people intensive training and private sector work experience,” it added.