Fund transfers Dh374,000 for kids of war-hit nations

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Fund transfers Dh374,000 for kids of war-hit nations
Palestinian boys peek out through holes in their family's tent next to their destroyed house in Beit Hanun.

Sharjah - Sharjah International Board on Books for Young Fund's projects will provide children in Afghanistan and Palestine with access to books, activities and workshops.

By Staff Reporter

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Published: Mon 10 Aug 2015, 12:00 AM

Last updated: Tue 11 Aug 2015, 8:57 AM

The Sharjah International Board on Books for Young Fund (IBBY Fund) has transferred about Dh374,000 (100,000 Swiss Francs) in aid to the education of under-privileged children in the war-torn Palestine and Afghanistan nations.
The projects, which were selected for sponsorship by the fund during the Bologna Children's Book Fair on March 31 of this year, will provide children in the two countries with access to books, activities and workshops that help them prepare for brighter futures.
PBBY, the Palestinian section of the IBBY, will organise training programmes for the young war victims in Gaza Strip at Al Sikah library until Al Ata'a library, which was destroyed during conflict, is rebuilt. The project also plans to reconstruct book collections and offer bibliotherapy, socio-psychological support and stress relief via unique reading-related activities.
The Afghanistan project, which is a continuation of the ASCHIANA/IBBY mobile library programme, focuses on a long-term reading plan for local children living in refugee camps, orphanages, and disability and juvenile rehabilitation centres.
The fund's sponsorship money will aid library assistants, reading assistants, storytellers and art trainers in their work with underprivileged children, as well as help to set up mobile libraries in Kabul, Herat, Mazar-i-Sharif and the Paktia Province.
Speaking on the transfer of funds, Marwa Al Aqroubi, President of the UAEBBY, said: "We are very pleased with the smooth and successful transfer of funds, and that the PBBY and ASCHIANA organisations will be able to start working on their projects right away. With our support, volunteers in Palestine and Afghanistan will be fully equipped to assist disadvantaged and underprivileged children in moving past adversity and to help open them up to new possibilities in their lives."
The Sharjah IBBY Fund, launched in 2012 by the United Arab Emirates Board on Books for Young People (UAEBBY) and the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), has supported several successful projects last year in the Cana region, including Lebanon and Tunisia.
reporters@khaleejtimes.com


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