Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden have concluded their Middle Eastern trip in Lebanon.
The Crown Princess Couple arrived in Beruit alongside Swedish government council member, Lena Hallengren on 17 October. They were first welcomed at the Presidential Palace in Beirut by Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun. That evening they attended a dinner hosted by Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariris.
The following day, Their Royal Highnesses visited the Palestinian refugee camp Burj al Barajneh and the Yarmouk Elementary School for Girls, the latter which is run by the UN Relief Society for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA). The students welcomed the royals by singing the Swedish national anthem while wearing the Swedish national dress. They were able to meet the children in grades one and six, as well as the members of the “School Parliament.”
Next, Crown Princess Victoria spoke at the conference “Lebanon Multi-Stakeholder SDG Forum” (the theme of the UN Global Agenda and Agenda 2030), which according to the Royal Court, “aims to implement sustainable development measures.”
Her Royal Highness, an advocate for the UN SDG, spoke about the Development Goals remarking, “Ladies and Gentlemen: The clock is ticking! Let there be no doubt: the situation is serious – even alarming. But it is not hopeless. Achieving the 2030 Agenda is difficult, but not impossible. And the time to act is now – not later.”
During lunch, the Crown Princess and the State Council travelled to the International Rescue Committee (IRC) Livelihood Center. The centre works to protect and enhance the ability of vulnerable Lebanese and refugees to support themselves. They next met the heads of UNHCR, UNDP, Unicef and UNRWA in Lebanon before the Crown Princess Couple and government attended a reception at the Swedish Embassy in the evening. Sweden opened an embassy in Lebanon this year after 17 years of being absent in the Middle Eastern country.
Their third and final day on 19 October saw Their Royal Highnesses visit the KAFA organisation, “Enough violence & exploitation,” which was founded in 2005 as a feminist and secular organisation in Lebanon.
“They work to counter violence at home against women and children, and to combat the exploitation and trafficking of women, especially migrant workers and prostitutes. In order to get a change, they also work to reach men on these issues,” the Royal Court stated.
Next, Sweden’s future monarch visited, alongside the City Council, the UN Refugee Body UNHCR where they received a tour and spoke to a group of young female refugees that have taken part in the UNHCR’s Youth Initiative.
Last, Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel were at Beiteddine Palace where their official visit came to an end before they travelled back to Sweden to be reunited with their two children, Princess Estelle and Prince Oscar.
