A celebration of hope and joy
UNICEF marks this World Children’s Day with meaningful activities, giving children a chance to share their wishes and dream about the future
The Mahmadiyeh village, Rural Damascus, Syria, 5 November 2024, - “We wanted to celebrate the World Children's Day with the communities we support through our psychosocial sessions, but we knew the celebration would take on a special meaning in Mahmadiyeh village,” said Safaa, a UNICEF-supported worker on a child protection mobile team.
“On regular days, when we visit Mahmadiyeh school, the students eagerly run toward us, offering to help carry our things. I couldn’t help but imagine their faces during a celebration like this—one that many of them had never experienced before,” she added.
A month ago, the mobile team started visiting Mahmadiyeh village once a week to provide psychosocial support to the students at the village’s only school, which had reopened in 2021.
The celebration included a mix of educational activities and fun games, starting with a cartoon character greeting the children in the main corridor—many of them encountering such a character for the first time.
In one classroom, children dressed in costumes and performed a play to introduce children's rights in a fun and engaging way. “I loved my role representing the right of children to play. It's my favorite right, and I want all the students at my school to know about it,” said Najwa, an eight-year-old girl who portrayed the right to play.
In another classroom, children were busy coloring, writing, and drawing their dreams for the future, as well as imagining the ideal world for children. Malak, 12, who took part in this creative activity, shared her vision, “The ideal world for children should have a huge amusement park to play in, transportation available to visit grandparents in far cities, colourful schools with nice teachers, and many grocery stores to buy candies, not just one,” she said.
Other activities included running games, filling the space with laughter and smiles. “It's a festival of joy for all of us—children, workers, and teachers,” said Safaa. "I feel so lucky to be part of it,” she concluded.
From January 2023 to October 2024, over 230,000 boys and girls in Syria received mental health and psychosocial support, and more than 100,000 parents benefited from UNICEF-supported parenting skills sessions. The activities were funded by the Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance; the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development through the KFW Development Bank; the Governments of Australia, Canada, Italy, Japan, Switzerland, Norway and New Zealand; the Global Humanitarian Thematic Fund, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency; the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office; UNICEF National Committees for Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Japan, and United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, Singapore; UNICEF Egypt; the Republic of Korea; and United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund.
