Various members of the MGCY Regional Caucuses and SDG 16 Youth Caucus participated in the LTIPS Closing Ceremony in Rabat, Morocco, led by Sharifah Norizah Syed Ahamad Kabeer.

(Asia Pacific RCC/ Malaysia) with technical support from Regine Stephanie Borja Guevara (Asian Youth Peace Network) and Nidal Benali (Moroccan Local Youth Councils Network).

30 young ambassadors of peace were inaugurated, as the first-ever cohort of the Leadership Training in Peace and Security (LTIPS) by ICESCO. Held on Thursday 23 September, the Joint Closing Ceremony of the LTIPS and Biennale Luanda program 2021, in partnership with UNESCO and the African Union, set forth the new peace ambassadors to their journeys into the real world, after equipping them with knowledge and leadership tools in the humanitarian and peacebuilding fields.

High-level keynote speakers from around the world who expressed their support to the youth leaders were: H.E. Dr. Salim Al Malik, Director General of ICESCO, H.E. Ouhoumoudou Mahamadou, Prime Minister of Niger, H.E. Tun Musa bin Hitam, former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, H.E. M. Messoudi Mustapha, Secretary General, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Kingdom of Morocco, Prof. Abdel Rahmane Baba-Moussa, Secretary General of CONFEMEN, Ms. Louisette Renée Thobi Etame Ndedi, Secretary General of CONFEJES, Mr. El Hadj As Sy, Chair of the Board, Koffi Annan Foundation, and Mr. M. Salah Khaled, Director of the Regional Office of UNESCO in Central Africa.

Beyond panel discussions, in the true spirit of long term sustainability, 4 youth-led projects, all of whom were driven by women, were awarded $2,500 grants to scale impact across their communities, namely: Doris Saba, Lebanon, Cinema for Peace; Lama Ranjous, Syria, Educate and Advocate: Euphrates River Project; Aziza Laghza, Morocco, Spreading a culture of tolerance and citizenship in educational institutions through drawing and plastic arts; and Aishatu Alhaji Kabu, Nigeria, “Enhancing the involvement of youths and women in countering violent extremism and peacebuilding processes.”

In light of ICESCO’s 2021 Year of Women, the theme of the flagship LTIPS was “Women and Youth: Agents of peace”, in support of the global movement of Leaving Nobody Behind and Building the Societies We Want. Over the course of 7 months throughout 10 modules, ICESCO trained and mobilized next leaders to be agents of change for peace, citizenship and resilience in their own spheres of influence.