African Youth Bureau convenes with International Organization of La Francophonie's Young Diplomats under Dr. Ashraf Sobhy's Leadership
On Wednesday evening, Dr. Ashraf Sobhy, the Minister of Youth and Sports, met with around 90 young diplomats from member states of the International Organization of La Francophonie, representing approximately 32 Francophone countries. The meeting took place at the ministry's headquarters in the New Administrative Capital as part of a training program organized by the Senghor University in Alexandria for the mission from June 4-23.
At the beginning of the meeting, Hassan Ghazaly, the General Coordinator of the African Youth Bureau, praised the important role played by Dr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the founder of Senghor University and the main link in developing international relations between Egypt and Francophone countries, as the first Secretary-General of the International Organization of La Francophonie. He also presented a number of programs and projects offered by the bureau, including the most important milestones and outputs of the Nasser Fellowship, which has been sponsored by Dr. Ashraf Sobhy, the Minister of Youth and Sports, since its inception. He noted that the fellowship, in its first edition, was able to receive the sponsorship of the Prime Minister, Dr. Mostafa Madbouly, in 2019, coinciding with Egypt's presidency of the African Union. It then received sponsorship from the President of the Republic for the following three editions, until June 2023.
Ghazaly added that the number of graduates of the Nasser Fellowship for International Leadership has reached about 570 young leaders from about 90 countries since 2019, pointing out that the fellowship aimed to transfer Egypt's ancient civilization in establishing national institutions that may predate the founding of entire countries, in addition to introducing Egypt's development experience through presenting the most important national projects adopted by the state recently. He also emphasized the activation of the Egyptian experience in empowering youth at the local and international levels.
Ghazaly confirmed that the Nasser Fellowship was able, over four years, to achieve the concept of sustainability through its outputs of developmental programs, community initiatives, and projects that reached 65 countries. The official website of the Nasser Youth Movement, broadcast officially in five languages (Arabic, English, Swahili, French, and Spanish), which contains more than 3,737 articles in various fields and disciplines, is one of the forms of supporting cultural rights of peoples.
In a related context, Dr. Ashraf Sobhy praised the important role played by Senghor University, which belongs to the International Organization of La Francophonie, in preparing and training young African cadres to participate in developing development policies and strategies in their countries. He also emphasized the interest of the Egyptian state in deepening its relations with the International Organization of La Francophonie, pointing out Egypt's interaction with the activities of La Francophonie in various fields, especially scientific and cognitive fields. He also stressed the need to highlight the solid values on which the Francophonie's journey is based, foremost among them being the values of dialogue, solidarity, and respect for cultural and human diversity on which the founding fathers of the Francophonie movement relied fifty years ago to launch the Francophone work journey.
During his speech, Dr. Ashraf Sobhy also reviewed several national strategies for youth that are scheduled to be implemented over the next five years, locally and internationally, as well as reviewing the efforts of the Ministry of Youth and Sports in Africa in various fields such as sports, training, and rehabilitation in various activities, events, and programs, the most prominent of which is the Nasser Fellowship for International Leadership.
Dr. Ashraf Sobhy concluded the meeting by emphasizing the Ministry of Youth and Sports' keenness to continue supporting the continent's youth and investing in their energies and ideas in various fields. The meeting was attended by Major General Ismail El-Far, the head of the Youth Sector, Dr. Abdullah El-Batsh, the Assistant Minister for Youth Policy and Development, Rania Sami, the Director-General of the General Administration for International Relations and Agreements, and a number of executive leaders in the ministry.
