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| Queen Rania |
Rania Al Abdullah (Arabic: رانيا العبد الله Rānyā al-‘abdu l-Lāh) (born Rania al Yassin on 31 August 1970) is the current Queen consort of Jordan as the wife of King Abdullah II of Jordan.
Queen Rania speaks on behalf of a variety of causes, both at home and abroad. In Jordan, her work concentrates on the calibre and quality of education for Jordanian children, while abroad she advocates for global education and for world leaders to fulfill their commitments towards the second Millennium Development Goal, Universal Primary Education.
Rania Al-Yassin was born in Kuwait to Palestinian parents from Tulkarm. She attended the New English School in Jabriya, Kuwait, then received a degree in Business Administration from the American University in Cairo. Upon her graduation from American University, she worked briefly in marketing for Citibank, followed by a job with Apple Inc. in Amman.[1]
She was ranked as the most beautiful consort (or first lady) in the world by Harpers and Queen magazine in 2011
Education and health
Over the past few years, Queen Rania has launched, championed, and given patronage to several initiatives in education and learning.
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.[3][4].[2
Community empowerment
Queen Rania's first venture was the establishment of the Jordan River Foundation (JRF) in 1995.
The Jordan River Children Program (JRCP) was developed by Queen Rania to place children’s welfare above political agendas and cultural taboos.[11] 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 Queen Rania to call for an emergency meeting of government and non-government (including JRF) stakeholders to discuss where the system was failing.[12]
In 2009, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of her husband's accession to the throne, Queen Rania launched a community champion award (Ahel Al Himmeh) in March to highlight the accomplishments of groups and individuals who have helped their local communities.[13]
Youth
Queen Rania has stated that an essential aspect of education is to equip young people with the necessary skills to perform well in the workplace.[14]
She initiated the Al-Aman Fund for the Future of Orphans in 2003,[15] and has partnered with international universities providing scholarships for Jordanian students abroad.[8] She supports Junior Achievement Worldwide, which was established by Save the Children in 1999 and launched as a Jordanian non-profit organization by the Queen in 2001.[16] In her capacity as Regional Ambassador of INJAZ Arabia, she has taught classes, and engaged in dialogue with young people in other countries; she also launched INJAZ’s presence elsewhere in the Arab world.[17] 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.[18]
International roles and positions
- In November 2000, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) invited Queen Rania to join its Global Leadership Initiative.[19]
- At the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2007, Rania was named UNICEF's first Eminent Advocate for Children.[21]
- July 2009, the United Nations made Queen Rania Honorary Chairperson for the United Nations Girls' Education Initiative (UNGEI).[22]
- For their Global Action Week in April 2009, the Global Campaign for Education named Queen Rania their Honorary Chairperson.[86]
- In early 2002, Queen Rania joined the Board of Directors of the International Youth Foundation, based in Baltimore, Maryland, in the United States.[57]
- In September 2002, Queen Rania became a member of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Foundation Board.[48] She is also on the Foundation Board of the Forum of Young Global Leaders (YGL) and has been the Chairperson for the Nominations and Selection Committee since July 2004, when the forum was established.[49]
- In September 2006, Queen Rania joined the United Nations Foundation Board of Directors.[58]
- Rania is a member of the Every Child Council for the GAVI Alliance.[87]
- Rania is an Honorary Member of the International Advisory Council for the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW).[88]
- Queen Rania is Co-Chair of the Arab Open University.[89]
- She is Honorary Chairperson of the Jordanian Chapter of Operation Smile.[90]
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