Queen Rania of Jordan

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Rania Al Abdullah<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Efn (born Rania Al-Yassin, 31 August 1970) is Queen of Jordan as the wife of King Abdullah II. Rania's domestic activities include education, youth, environmental, and health initiatives.<ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:Dead link</ref> Globally, she has campaigned for education and cross-cultural dialogue. She has authored three children's books: The Sandwich Swap, The King's Gift, and Eternal Beauty.

Early life

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Rania in a traditional Palestinian dress, 2017

Template:Jordanian Royal Family Rania Al-Yassin was born on 31 August 1970 in Kuwait, to Palestinian parents.<ref name=born>Template:Cite web</ref> Her father, Faisal Al-Yassin, was originally from Tulkarm in the West Bank, Palestine.<ref name=":3">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=born/> Rania attended the New English School in Kuwait and subsequently earned a degree in business administration from the American University in Cairo. Following her graduation, she worked briefly in marketing for Citibank, followed by a job with Apple Inc. in Amman, Jordan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Activities

Since her marriage, Rania has used her position to advocate for various sectors of society in Jordan and beyond.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref>

Domestic agenda

Education

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Rania during a dinner celebrating the partnership between the Sesame Workshop and the Mosaic Foundation in Washington, D.C., US, May 2006

Queen Rania has launched and championed several initiatives in education and learning. She has stated that an essential aspect of education is to equip young people with the necessary skills to perform well in the workplace.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She has said that education is a tool for individuals to empower themselves, allows the poor to improve their lives, and is an investment Jordan makes to protect its people from being exploited and falling victim to extremist ideology.<ref name=":2" />

In July 2005 in partnership with the Ministry of Education, the King and Queen launched an annual teachers' award, the Queen Rania Award for Excellence in Education.<ref name="Queen Rania Teachers Award">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The Queen is chairperson of Jordan's first interactive children's museum, which opened in May 2007.<ref name="Opening Children's Museum">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Children's Museum">Template:Cite web</ref> In April 2008, the Queen launched "Madrasati" ("My School"), a public-private initiative aimed at refurbishing 500 of Jordan's public schools over a five-year period.<ref name="Madrasati">Template:Cite web</ref> Rania also established The Queen Rania Al Abdullah Center for Educational Technology on 6 June 2001, aiming to use modern technology to serve and develop education in Jordan.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The Queen Rania Teacher Academy, which was launched in June 2009, provides professional development programs for current and new teachers in partnership with the Ministry of Education. The Queen Rania Scholarship Program<ref name="Scholarships">Template:Cite web</ref> partners with several universities from around the world to support scholarships and training for Jordanian students and workers in management, marketing, design, business administration, psychology, engineering, law, and other fields.<ref name="Scholarships" /><ref name="RHAS">Template:Cite web</ref>

Community and youth empowerment

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Rania at the World Economic Forum on the Middle East held at the Dead Sea, Jordan, in 2007

Queen Rania's first venture was the establishment of the Jordan River Foundation (JRF) in 1995.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The Jordan River Children Program (JRCP) was developed by Rania to place children's welfare above political agendas and cultural taboos.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> This led to the launch, in 1998, of JRF's Child Safety Program, which addresses the immediate needs of children at risk from abuse and initiated a long-term campaign to increase public awareness about violence against children. The deaths of two children in Amman as a result of child abuse in early 2009 led Rania to call for an emergency meeting of government and non-government (including JRF) stakeholders to discuss where the system was failing.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2009, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of her husband's accession to the throne, Rania launched a community champion award (Ahel Al Himmeh) to highlight the accomplishments of groups and individuals who have helped their local communities.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Rania initiated the Al-Aman Fund for the Future of Orphans in 2003.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In her capacity as regional ambassador of INJAZ Al-Arab, Rania has taught classes and engaged in dialogue with young people in other countries; she also launched INJAZ Al-Arab's presence elsewhere in the Arab world.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She chaired a discussion with entrepreneurs in celebration of INJAZ Al-Arab's 10th anniversary, showcasing alumni's success stories<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> At the 2008 World Economic Forum in Davos, she launched the "Empowering One Million Arab Youth by 2018" campaign, which was conceived by INJAZ Arabia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Health

In 2005, Rania established the Royal Health Awareness Society (RHAS) to educate parents and children about the basics of nutrition and hygiene, the benefits of exercise, the harms of smoking, and other areas related to health.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2011, the first specialized medical building for children was built in Jordan, Queen Rania Children's Hospital, established to improve the medical service for Jordanian children. The hospital provides for the care of children, especially complex medical cases including organ transplants and endoscopic operations.<ref name=":0" />

Global agenda

Global education

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Speaking at the 2003 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland

In November 2000, in recognition of her commitment to the cause of children and youth, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) invited Rania to join its Global Leadership Initiative.<ref name="UNICEF GLI">Template:Cite webTemplate:Dead link</ref> In early 2002 Rania joined the board of directors of the International Youth Foundation, based in Baltimore, Maryland, in the United States.<ref name="IYF">Template:Cite web</ref> In January 2007, Rania was named UNICEF's first Eminent Advocate for Children.<ref name="UNICEF EAC">Template:Cite web</ref> In August 2009, Rania became Honorary Global Chair of the United Nations Girls' Education Initiative (UNGEI).<ref name="UNGEI">Template:Cite web</ref>

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Rania at Davos, 2009

As a longtime supporter of the Global Campaign for Education (GCE),<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Rania met with children and inspirational women in South Africa, both in the cities of Johannesburg and Soweto, in March 2009.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> One of the stories in the book, "Maha of the Mountains", was contributed by Rania.<ref name="Maha">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

During her April 2009 US trip, Rania joined leading education advocates Congresswoman Nita Lowey and Counsellor to the Secretary of the Treasury Gene Sperling to launch "The Big Read" as part of Global Campaign for Education's global action week calling for quality basic education for all children.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She was also hosted by first lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, during that same trip.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

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US First Lady Michelle Obama hosts Queen Rania in the Yellow Oval Room, April 2009.

On 20 August 2009, Rania co-founded and led the launch of the "1GOAL: Education for All" campaign alongside Gary Lineker, and with the help of top international footballers at Wembley Stadium, London.<ref name="1GOAL">Template:Cite web</ref> On 6 October 2009, Rania was joined by Prime Minister Gordon Brown of the UK, the president of FIFA, Sepp Blatter, President Jacob Zuma of South Africa, and other heads of state, for the Global Launch of 1GOAL, which took place across six locations worldwide.<ref name="1GOAL Global Launch">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Cross-cultural dialogue

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With Sajid Javid at the Supporting Syria and the Region conference, 2016

Rania has also been particularly vocal about the importance of cross-cultural and interfaith dialogue to foster greater understanding, tolerance and acceptance across the world.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She has used her status to correct what she sees as misconceptions in the West about the Arab world.<ref name="forbes-100">Template:Cite web</ref>

Rania has played a significant role in reaching out to the global community to foster values of tolerance and acceptance, and increase cross-cultural dialogue. For example, regionally and internationally, Rania has campaigned for a greater understanding between cultures in such high-profile forums as the Jeddah Economic Forum,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University,<ref name="Harvard">Template:Cite web</ref> and the Skoll Foundation<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> in the UK. She has also made public appearances, including a half-hour television interview on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 17 May 2006, where she spoke about misconceptions about Islam and especially women in Islam.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In September 2006, Rania also joined the United Nations Foundation board of directors.<ref name="UNF">Template:Cite web</ref> The UN Foundation builds and implements public-private partnerships to address the world's most pressing problems, and broadens support for the UN through advocacy and public outreach.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Microfinance

In September 2003, Rania accepted an invitation to join the board of directors of the Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA).<ref name="FINCA">Template:Cite web</ref>

An emissary for the United Nations' International Year of Microcredit in 2005, Rania's belief in microfinance and her partnership with FINCA<ref name="FINCA" /> has generated more Jordanian micro-businesses, with the official opening of FINCA Jordan in February 2008.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Environment

In October 2020, Rania was named as a member of the Earthshot Prize Council, an initiative of Prince William to find solutions to environmental issues.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Social media

YouTube

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Rania has a large audience across multiple social media platforms<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Rania has used YouTube, stated as a way to promote intercultural dialogue by calling on young people around the world to engage in a global dialogue to dismantle stereotypes of Muslims and the Arab world.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 30 March 2008, Rania launched her own YouTube channel, initially to invite viewers to give their opinions of the Middle East and talk about stereotypes they may have of Arabs and Muslims.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Between 30 March and 12 August (International Youth Day), Rania posted videos on YouTube in which she asked people to send her their questions about Islam and the Arab world.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She provided responses to those questions and explained her view of the truth about various Arab and Muslim stereotypes. Over five months she posted videos on subjects that included honour killings, terrorism and the rights of Arab women.<ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:Dead link</ref> International personalities such as Dean Obeidallah,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Maz Jobrani,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and YouTube star Mia Rose<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> also contributed videos to the campaign.

In 2008, Rania participated in YouTube's In My Name<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> campaign. She appeared alongside The Black Eyed Peas member will.i.am in the video, "End Poverty – Be the Generation,"<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> which urged world leaders to keep the promises they made in 2000 at the United Nations Millennium Summit.

Twitter

To coincide with the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Jordan on 8 May 2009, Rania started using the microblogging website Twitter with the username @QueenRania.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On the occasion of the World Economic Forum held at the Dead Sea in Jordan, June 2009, she conducted her first Twitter interview, answering five questions from the general public via her Twitter account.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Personal life

Rania met Jordanian Prince Abdullah bin Al-Hussein at a dinner party in January 1993. On 10 June 1993, they were married at Zahran Palace.<ref name=":1" /> Their wedding ceremony was considered a national holiday. The couple has four children:<ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref>

Abdullah ascended the throne on 7 February 1999, and proclaimed Rania queen on 22 March 1999.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Queen Rania is Muslim.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite web </ref> Describing Islam, Rania stated that "Islam is a religion of peace, tolerance and mercy. It is a source of comfort and strength for more than 1.6 billion Muslims."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Publications

  • As a tribute to King Hussein, and on the first anniversary of his death, Rania produced The King's Gift, a children's book about him.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Proceeds of the book go to the benefit of underprivileged children across Jordan.
  • Her second book, entitled Eternal Beauty, which she wrote in celebration of Mother's Day 2008 tells the story of a young girl's conversation with a little sheep as she searches for the most beautiful thing in the world. The book was released as part of the Greater Amman Municipality's contest, called "Mama's Story".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
  • For the 2009 Big Read event, Rania wrote Maha of the Mountains, a short story which tells of a young girl's determination to get an education and the challenges she faced.<ref name="Maha" />
  • The Sandwich Swap is a book inspired by an incident in her childhood. It tells the story of Lily and Salma, two best friends, who argue over the "yucky" taste of their respective peanut butter and jelly and hummus sandwiches. The girls then overcome and embrace their differences. The book was co-authored by Queen Rania and Kelly DiPucchio.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In May 2010, the book went to the top of the New York Times Best Seller list for children's books.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Affiliations

Queen Rania campaigned for Petra to be voted as one of the New 7 Wonders of the World, including welcoming New7Wonders<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> to Petra during its world tour.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

International roles and positions

Honours

National

Foreign

Awards and recognition

Honorary doctorates

Notes

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References

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