Scouts gather in Saudi Arabia for Messengers of Peace youth leadership event
Sixty Scouts from across Saudi Arabia and around the world and came together this week in Riyadh for three days of training and workshops on youth leadership, peace education, and innovation. The gathering marked a new chapter for the global Messengers of Peace initiative, which was renewed earlier this year to empower young people to respond to today’s challenges and take action in their communities.
Participants were joined by Messengers of Peace awardees and key partners who took part in workshops, panel discussions, and intergenerational dialogues. Held from 14 to 16 September, sessions explored themes such as strengthening youth leadership, harnessing technology for peace, and building networks to foster collaboration across cultures and generations.
At a panel discussion hosted at the King Abdulaziz Public Library, HRH Prince Guillaume, Crown Prince of Luxembourg and Immediate Past Chair of the World Scout Foundation, spoke to young participants about his lifelong passion for Scouting.
The programme also included a launch event hosted by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Education to celebrate the renewal of the Messengers of Peace Fund. Over the next ten years, the USD 50 million fund will support projects in areas such as peace education, community development, humanitarian action, and capacity strengthening. Guidance on how National Scout Organizations (NSOs) can apply for grants will be shared in the coming period.
During the event, several Messengers of Peace Awardees - Paul Alexandru Pop (Romania), Ruhi Rusaba Jahwa Jahan (Bangladesh), Karla Aurora Rojo Rovelo (Mexico), Maman Lamine Soumana Ide Issa (Niger), and Yossr Baaziz (Tunisia) - shared powerful stories about the impact of their Scouting projects in their communities.
In his address, the Minister of Education and President of the Saudi Arabian Scouts Association Yousef bin Abdullah Al-Benyan reaffirmed the Kingdom’s commitment to the Messengers of Peace initiative. He emphasised that the renewed funding aims to expand the Movement to more than 100 million Scouts worldwide.
HE Minister Yousef bin Abdullah Al-Benyan added that funding will be provided to a range of projects, including those on the environment, health, volunteering, peacebuilding, and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Also in attendance were World Scouting Secretary General David Berg, World Scout Foundation Board Members, including HH Princess Sama Bint Faisal Al Saud and HE Faisal bin Abdulrahman bin Muaammar from Saudi Arabia, representatives from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, leadership from Saudi Arabian Scouts Association, World Scouting and World Scout Foundation, as well as civil society organisations including Alwaleed Philanthropies and the Misk Foundation.
Since 2010, the Messengers of Peace initiative has empowered millions of Scouts to lead community impact projects and contribute close to 3 billion hours of service for peace and sustainability worldwide.
