Cairo, 14 April 2018- In Celebration of World Health Day, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Egypt organized a community event on Saturday in partnership with Tadamon, The Egyptian Refugee Multicultural Council, and in collaboration with the Egyptian Ministry of Youth and Sports.

Approximately 600 Egyptian, Eritrean, Sudanese, Ethiopian, Somalian, Syrians and Yemeni women, men and children attended the event hosted in Ard Elliwa Youth Center. Participants engaged in awareness-raising sessions on deworming, health and hygiene delivered by IOM medical staff. Around 200 migrant and Egyptian children were provided with prophylactic anti-parasitic medication, and more than 400 women and men were given the opportunity to check their blood pressure and discuss health-related concerns. IOM also offered care packages that including feminine hygiene products.

Yemeni, Somali, Syrian and Egyptian communities catered food for the participants during the event. This gave the opportunity to participants to discover new and different cuisines, and contributed to promoting income-generating activities for women living in Ard Elliwa.

“This opportunity gave us a rare chance to meet  with other community members and socialize, there was good food and service and it was a great time, I think events like this really help those of us that have a hard time getting out of the house due to obligations and children,” stated one member of Ard ElLiwa community

The event allowed community leaders and Community Based Organizations (CBOs) to share experiences and knowledge regarding challenges and opportunities in the area.

The community day was held within the framework of the “Regional Development and Protection Programme for North Africa” (RDPP NA) intervention funded by the European Union. This initiative supports the accomplishment of UN Sustainable Development Goal 3 Good Health and Well-being, Goal 10 Reduced Inequalities and Goal 17 Partnerships for the Goals. It also contributes to the realization of Egypt’s Sustainable Development Strategy: Vision 2030, in particular the Education and Training Pillar.

For more information, contact Zeinab Sabet iomegypt@iom.int