Khalid bin Sultan Al Qasimi Humanitarian Foundation supports frontline workers protecting children
On the International Day of Peace, the Khalid bin Sultan Al Qasimi Humanitarian Foundation highlighted the field workers, coordinators, and specialists who stand behind the child protection programs it supports worldwide, underscoring the role they play daily in helping children regain safety and trust and access their fundamental rights.
For a child facing danger, protection may begin with a single individual: a field worker who takes the initiative to reach out, a specialist who helps their family access services, or a teacher who notices a child struggling and decides to intervene. This work is gaining increasing importance amid the expanding scope of conflicts and crises around the world. The economic cost of violence and conflict reached approximately $21.81 trillion last year, equivalent to about 10.5% of global gross domestic product. Meanwhile, 103 countries are currently engaged in external or international conflicts, nearly double the number recorded since 2008.
This year’s International Day of Peace, observed on September 21, carried the United Nations theme “Invest in Peace – for everyone, everywhere, every day,” highlighting the role individuals and communities can play in building peace through daily actions. This is reflected in the experiences of workers within the programs supported by the Foundation in several countries.
In Morocco, the Foundation supports the efforts of the “Bayti” Association to reach the most vulnerable children and provide them with the necessary support. The Foundation also collaborates with the “Aman Foundation for Childhood” to reach children and families in remote communities in the Souss-Massa region, where two mobile teams provide psychosocial care, legal counseling, birth registration services, and support for children to return to education.
In Mexico, the Foundation partnered with Plan International to implement the “Child Guardians” program, which targets migrant children and adolescents by providing safe spaces, psychological first aid, mobile health units, and activities that help them express themselves and interact in a safe environment.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Foundation is addressing one of the risks associated with difficult economic conditions. In June 2026, the Khalid bin Sultan Al Qasimi Humanitarian Foundation and UNICEF announced a program to combat child labor in informal mining.
In 2025, programs supported by the Khalid bin Sultan Al Qasimi Humanitarian Foundation reached more than 36,000 people in Morocco, Mexico, and Zanzibar. This impact has extended to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where support is now also being provided to children exposed to hazardous work in informal mining activities.
Logan Murad, Director of the Khalid bin Sultan Al Qasimi Humanitarian Foundation, stated: “Peace is not something we provide from a distance; it is built by the people working on the ground, who stand by the child day after day. Thanks to their efforts, and not just ours, all of this becomes possible. On this International Day of Peace, we extend to them our deepest gratitude and appreciation.”
For the child, this peace may mean finding someone they can trust after being let down by others, or finding a space where they can laugh and play after the experience of displacement, or leaving a dangerous workplace for a school seat that allows them to imagine a different future. The impact of this peace can be seen in a child who begins to speak, returns to school, or finally feels safe enough to laugh again.
