September 2022 -  IOM Egypt in cooperation with the National Coordinating Committee for Combating and Preventing Illegal Migration and Trafficking in Persons (NCCPIM&TiP) hosted the first youth Chess Tournament that was organized in Wadi Degla Club, New Cairo. The event lasted two days and was organized jointly with NCCPIM&TIP under the generous funding of the Italian Ministry or Interior in cooperation with EU and it’s RDPP program. The event was led and organized by the Egyptian Chess Champion Dr. Bassem Amin in total 76 individuals from different governorates participated in the two day event September 7-8, 2022
The final ceremony was attended by H.E. Mr. Pietro VACANTI PERC Deputy Minister of Italy to the Arab Republic of Egypt, H.E. Mr. Omar Elian Immigration Attaché of Italy to the Arab Republic of Egypt, H.E. Ambassador Naela Gabr, Chairperson, National Coordinating Committee for Combating and Preventing Illegal Migration and Trafficking in Persons (NCCPIM&TiP), H.E. Ms. Graziella Rizza Human Rights Section Head of the European Union Delegation to the Arab Republic of Egypt, and Mr. Kurdvin Rasool North Africa Programme Coordinator at IOM Egypt.
During the second day of the tournament, H.E. Ambassador Naela Gabr thankfully delivered a session to raise the participants’ awareness on the risks of irregular migration and present the positive alternatives provided by the Government of Egypt (GoE). Furthermore, she praised the excellent cooperation to implement the activities of the two important programmes: RDPP funded by the European Union and Italy, and Aware Migrants funded by Italy, implemented by IOM as well as the important role of sport in bringing the youth of different backgrounds together.

The activity contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically Goal 1 “No Poverty”, Goal 3 “Good Health”, Goal 16 “Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions” and Goal 17 “Partnerships for the Goals”. The activity also aligns with the Global Compact for Migration (GCM), Objective 10 “Prevent, combat and eradicate trafficking in persons in the context of international migration” and Objective 7 “Address and reduce vulnerabilities in migration.”