Queen Rania visits family centre

Jordan's Queen Rania and Ban Soon-taek, the wife of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, were reported to visit together on Tuesday the Queen Rania Family and Child Centre (QRFCC) in Amman. Part of Rania's Jordan River Foundation (JRF), the QRFCC aims to offer a fresh approach to the traditional Arab model of a community centre, as well as providing integrated services and support to children and families. The Queen and Ban toured the centre, including  the drama workshop, the IT lab and the interactive library, while language courses, and training for the Family Support Line (FSL) volunteers were in progress. They also stopped by the art workshop, where “The Power of Colour” programme was taking place. Conducted with a group of mothers and their children, the programme aims to foster communication and reinforce connections between mother and child, and targets girls between the ages of seven and nine and their mothers. The centre also aims at educating and empowering children through the use of different “edutainment activities” to identify child abuse and equip the abused with the tools that help them protect themselves. Additionally, mothers are also provided with training to enhance their parenting skills and eliminate the use of violence as a means of punishment. The JRF launched the centre in 2005 to provide services and support to families at risk in an effort to promote the healthy development of children. Since the inception of JRF’s Child Safety Programme in 1997, training and awareness initiatives conducted through the QRFCC have enriched the lives of thousands of beneficiaries throughout the Kingdom. Ban is in Amman accompanying her husband on a short visit to the Kingdom. On Tuesday, the UN secretary general held talks with His Majesty King Abdullah and senior officials.