CAIRO: Popular Muslim preacher Amr Khaled encouraged youth to assume a positive role within their communities, pursue their dreams and overcome challenges they might face, at a lecture he gave at the American University in Cairo Sunday. Khaled’s lecture came as part of a string of public and media appearances he is making to publicize “Hemaya, a massive anti-drug campaign he launched two weeks ago.
Khaled explained that having a clear objective gives life true meaning, adding that determination is the key to attaining one’s goals.
His campaign was launched in collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the Right Start Foundation and the Dubai Police.
It is going to be executed over three main phases, Khaled explained on his weekly show on El Mehwar channel. The first phase will include broadcasting the campaign logo, the second is to organize 5,000 initiatives in the Arab World. Finally the third phase will entail offering help to drug abusers who can contact Hemaya through their hotline or email.
Khaled urged everyone to contribute to the campaign even by doing as little as publicizing its logo, which is available for download on his official website. The website is keeping count of the number of downloads, the number of posters distributed as well as the number of initiatives taken by volunteers.
According to the website, there are around 10 million drug abusers in the Arab world.
Hemaya campaign came on the heels of a press conference held by the UNODC and hosted by Regional Representative Mohamed Abdul-Aziz, who said that he is optimistic about the situation in Egypt.
Meanwhile, General Gamal Farouk, from the Anti-narcotics General Administration (ANGA), acknowledged the efforts of both the national security forces and the Ministry of Interior in leading several campaigns against drug use in Egypt.
