Sharjah: Officials from the UAE Board on Books for Young People (UAEBBY), the national branch of the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), recently visited the UAE Red Crescent’s Emirati-Jordanian refugee camp in Mrajeeb Al Fhood in Jordan.
Representatives from Knowledge without Borders (KwB) accompanied the officials, with the delegation’s visit to the camp forming a sideline initiative to the 16th edition of the Amman International Book Fair, which runs from September 28 to October 9.
Included among the delegation were Marwa Al Aqroubi, president of the UAEBBY executive board, and Rashid Al Kous, general manager of Knowledge without Borders.
As part of the ‘Kan Yama Kan’ (‘Once upon a Time’) initiative, the representatives conducted reading sessions and literature-themed educational and entertainment activities for the children there. The delegation also donated the ‘Big Heart Library’ with a diverse collection of 500 new children’s books.
Established at the camp in June 2014, the library’s initial stock of 3,000 books was supplied by Shaikha Budoor Al Qasimi, founder and patron of the UAEBBY and Head of the Knowledge without Borders organising committee.
Knowledge without Borders, another Sharjah-based cultural project dedicated to opening up reading for young people, distributed a collection of presents and gifts to the Syrian refugee children at the camp, including school supplies, with the aim of encouraging the children and motivating them to read and learn.
“The idea of the Kan Yama Kan initiative derived from the vision of Shaikha Budoor who believes that every child in this world has the right to have access to books and sources of knowledge. The initiative is committed to providing books and psychological support to children living in remote areas or whose lives have been affected by civil unrest and wars,” said Al Aqroubi.
“This is not the first time that the UAEBBY has visited the camp — our first visit saw the opening of the Big Heart Library in 2014. Through our activities with the children there we are aiming to help build a better future for them. We aspire to nurture their minds and souls through the therapeutic reading sessions that we provide. These are designed to help motivate them and encourage their positive thinking, with the aim of helping them to better deal with the challenges they face in their situation,” she said.
Al Aqroubi expressed her gratitude and appreciation to the management of the camp for supporting and facilitating the mission of the UAEBBY, praising the role of Emirates Red Crescent in helping refugees and those in need in the camp and elsewhere in the world.
