Sharjah 24: Ayman Othman Al Barout, Secretary-General of Arab Parliament for the Child (APC), met virtually with Laila bint Ahmed bin Awad Al-Najjar, Minister of Social Development in the Sultanate of Oman, as part of the APC preparations to hold the second session at the end of July.

Al Barout praised the cooperation of the Omani Government with APC, one of the institutions that develops Arab childhood under the umbrella of the Arab League.  Al Barout praised Laila bint Ahmed bin Awad Al Najjar’s keenness to strengthen cooperation between both sides.

Al Barout pointed that APC is keen to hold joint meetings with the Arab countries’ governments coordinating with authorities concerned with childhood in order to invite children to participate in APC.

Minister Laila bint Ahmed bin Awad Al Najjar highlighted the importance of APC and encouraging children to express their opinion. The Minister noted the importance of benefiting from the experiences of Arab national parliaments to train members and transfer these experiences to the Sultanate of Oman.

Al Barout explained the APC objectives, and the support given by His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohamed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah to establish the Parliament and the APC headquarters in the United Arab Emirates in Sharjah, under the umbrella of the League of Arab States.  

APC Secretary-General stressed the importance of establishing national parliaments for children in each Arab country, and indicated that APC encourages countries that do not have national parliaments to establish their own by providing expertise and assistance. Moreover, national parliaments have been established in both the United Arab Emirates and Jordan, and there are discussions to establish similar ones in the rest of the Arab countries.

Ayman Al Barout concluded that the main goal of APC is to train and rehabilitate children. In this regard, APC, in cooperation with the University of Sharjah, launched a diploma for members of APC that includes many subjects that qualify children for the parliamentary action.