Her Royal Highness Princess Lalla Meryem, President of the National Observatory for the Rights of the Child (ONDE), chaired on Saturday at the Parliament headquarters in Rabat over the official closing ceremony of the First edition of the African Forum of Children's Parliament, a continental event held under the High Patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist Him.
Organized by ONDE under the theme "Children’s Participation in Africa’s Development", the forum is part of the ongoing Vision of His Majesty the King for Africa, a vision marked by a steadfast commitment to strengthening South–South cooperation, African solidarity, and placing youth at the center of all development initiatives.
Upon her arrival at the Parliament headquarters, HRH Princess Lalla Meryem reviewed a detachment of the Auxiliary Forces that rendered honors, before being greeted by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rachid Talbi Alami; the First President of the Court of Cassation and Deputy President of the Supreme Council of the Judicial Power (CSPJ), M’Hammed Abdennabaoui; The King’s Prosecutor General at the Court of Cassation and President of the Public Prosecutor's Office, Hicham Balaoui; the Wali of the Rabat-Salé-Kénitra region and Governor of the Prefecture of Rabat, Mohamed Yacoubi; the President of the Regional Council of Rabat-Salé-Kénitra, Rachid El Abdi; and the President of the Municipal Council of Rabat, Fatiha El Moudni.
HRH was also greeted by the President of the Rabat prefectural council, Abdelaziz Derouiche; the Ambassador and Director General of the Moroccan Agency for International Cooperation (AMCI), Mohamed Methqal; the Secretary General of the House of Representatives, Najib El Khadi; and the Vice-President of ONDE, Ghizlane Benjelloun.
At the entrance of Parliament, HRH Princess Lalla Meryem was greeted by the Minister of National Education, Preschool and Sports, Mohamed Saâd Berrada; the Minister of Economic Inclusion, Small Business, Employment and Skills, Younes Sekkouri Oubbahessou; the Minister of Solidarity, Social Inclusion and Family, Naima Ben Yahya; and the Minister Delegate for Budget within the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Fouzi Lakjaâ.
Her Royal Highness was also greeted by the President of the National Assembly of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, Mohamed Bamba Meguett; the President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Burundi, Gélase Daniel Ndabirabe; the President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Djibouti, Dileita Mohamed Dileita; the President of the National Assembly of the United Republic of Tanzania, Mussa Azzan Zungu; and the President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Zambia, Nelly Butete Kashumba Mutti.
HRH Princess Lalla Meryem then visited five workshops held by African and Moroccan child parliamentarians. These included the workshop "Children’s right to participate in public policies and strategies: What place for child parliamentarians in the continent’s countries?" which invites young participants to reflect on their role in shaping public policies that concern them and highlights African experiences in child parliamentary participation, as well as ways to strengthen their contribution to national and continental decision-making processes.
The second workshop, "Africa facing the challenges of equitable and inclusive education", offered a collective reflection on persistent educational inequalities across the continent and ways to remedy them, ensuring equitable, inclusive, and quality education for every African child.
The third workshop focused on "Access to healthcare and the role of mental health in programs in Africa". It addressed disparities in healthcare access across the continent, emphasizing the need to integrate mental health into African public policies and fostering exchanges on the role of psychological well-being in national programs and innovative solutions to ensure equitable and comprehensive access to healthcare, particularly mental health.
The fourth workshop, "From education to exploitation: Child labor, an African reality", centered the debate on the root causes of child labor in Africa and its consequences on children’s future. The fifth workshop, "Children in street situations and early marriage: Building effective responses in Africa", shed light on two alarming realities that undermine the fundamental rights of children on the continent, offering a platform for consultation on concrete approaches to combating all forms of violence against children.
Her Royal Highness then attended the screening of two video capsules entitled "Sharing the achievements of the Moroccan Observatory and best practices in child participatory approaches" and "African Forum of the Children’s Parliament: fruitful exchanges".
On this occasion, child parliamentarians Mariyam Diouf from Senegal and Lugman Yazid Zeid from Djibouti announced the adoption, by acclamation at the end of the Forum’s proceedings, of the Final Declaration of the 1st African Forum of the Children’s Parliament, entitled "Rabat Declaration on Children’s Participation in Africa’s Development".
This Declaration confirms the creation of the African Network for Children’s Rights, for which ONDE will host the headquarters and provide all necessary support to accelerate the ambition of an Africa where the continent’s children become agents of change and builders of peace.
At the end of the ceremony, Her Royal Highness Princess Lalla Meryem posed for a commemorative photo with the participating African child parliamentarians.
The first edition of the African Forum of the Children’s Parliament, which opened on Friday, brought together more than 170 distinguished guests: Presidents of national parliamentary assemblies, ministers, and other officials and institutional representatives from 28 African countries.
MAP: 22 November 2025
