2002

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department - Amman) Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah commended the success of the cultural activities organized last year as part of Amman the Arab Cultural Capital for the year 2002.

In a meeting with members of the Higher National Committee of the Declaration of Amman the Arab Cultural Capital 2002, Queen Rania said the cultural activities organized throughout the past year represent a crucial step towards enhancing the role of culture at both local and regional levels.

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department - Amman) In the north of Jordan, students from Ras El Munif School for Girls started their new school year in a fresh new environment, while others explored the need of preserving cultural and historical heritage of the high Castle in Ajloun.

On a day trip to Ajloun, Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah visited the Ras El Munif School and accompanied students from two other public schools to the Rabad Castle, which is currently undergoing a JD 720,000 restoration as part of efforts by the tourism sector to preserve the site.

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department - Berlin) As part of their Majesties State Visit to Germany, Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah, accompanied by German First Lady visited the Charité Hospital in Berlin where they were received by Gerhard Gaedicke, Director of the Pediatric ward.

During the tour, Queen Rania visited the "Linked-up World for Children" project that was launched by the hospital in 1998 to provide children in hospitals with network computers that allow them to interact with other children outside the hospital and in different parts of Europe.

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department - London) Her Majesty Queen Rania Al- Abdullah launched a major new appeal to provide medical and food aid to vulnerable Palestinians inside the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Cherie Blair, the wife of British Prime Minister Tony Blair, joined Queen Rania in launching the appeal, which is hoped to raise half a million pounds to fund activities of the Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), a British charity that provides medical assistance and rehabilitation services in the West Bank and Gaza.

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department - Rhodes) "We have an important message to send (that is) our commitment to peace, tolerance, and equality, and our respect for diversity."

This was a message articulated by Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah to several hundred people gathered in Rhodes, Greece at an exhibition organized by the Royal Society of Fine Arts in Jordan and Pan-Mediterranean Women Artists Network with the aim of using arts as a tool to break stereotypes of women in Islam.

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department - Paris) Jordan's stability, tourism potential, history and heritage was the highlight of a 24-hour visit to France by a Jordanian tourism team led by Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah.

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department - New York) Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah demonstrated her strong belief in comprehensive healthcare for children by joining members of the US Congress, top executives in the business community, and heads of international organizations to extend support to an initiative that provides life-saving vaccines around the world.

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department - Amman) Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah launched "The State of the World's Children 2003" UNICEF Report that calls for greater participation of children in decisions affecting their lives.

The launching of the UNICEF report is part of Queen Rania's efforts in supporting programs that contribute to improving the lives of children and youth in Jordan and internationally.

As member of UNICEF's Global Leadership Initiative, Queen Rania had stressed the importance of global commitment towards improving the lives of children.

(The Jordan Times, By Dina Al Wakeel, Monday, October 7, 2002 - Amman) Early childhood development in the sights of local conference

A three-day meeting began on to highlight the importance of early childhood on overall human development.

The physical, psychological and mental makeup of an individual has been shown to largely be based upon the first eight years of life. Policies and strategies based on the Integrated Early Childhood Development (IECD) approach are being debated by service providers throughout the Kingdom.

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department - Rimini) In recognition of her role in encouraging social, cultural and humanitarian dialogue, Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah, patron of the 28th Pio Manz International Conference, was presented with the gold medal of the President of the Italian Republic.