World Refugee Day 2003 National Activity Plan: Italy

The renowned Italian tenor, Luciano Pavarotti, and the U2 Irish rock band leader, Bono, will raise funds for UNHCR's work on behalf of uprooted Iraqis during a charity concert in Modena, Italy. The May 27 event will be the 10th charity concert by "Pavarotti and Friends", a group of performers from around the world who support Pavarotti's fund-raising efforts. It will be their fourth consecutive concert in support of the UN refugee agency.

On June 18, UNHCR will participate in the press conference organised by the Municipality of Rome to announce a series of "Rome for Refugees" activities such as theatre performances, movie shows, football games and art exhibitions to be implemented in co-operation with eight NGOs.

On June 19, UNHCR will have a press conference to launch the art exhibition, "Contemporary Art for Refugees", and an art auction. City Councillors for Social Affairs and Culture will address the press together with the Premier Representative for Africa and UNHCR Representative.

In co-operation with the Chamber of Deputies and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, UNHCR will host a conference on refugee youth with the participation of high-level Italian authorities on June 20. The speakers include Alfredo Mantovano (Under Secretary of State, Ministry of Interior), Grazia Sestini (Under Secretary of State, Ministry of Social Affairs), Alberto Michelini (Representative of the Premier for Africa), and Prof Vittorino Andreoli, a famous psychiatrist specialising in teenagers.

The same group of organisers will hold an African art exhibition, "The Flight and the Memory", by Almighty God and other Ghanaian artists, in collaboration with NEPAD (the New Partnership for Africa's Development) Italy. The conference and the exhibition will be both held at the Chamber of Deputies.

The art exhibition, "Contemporary Art for Refugees", will be inaugurated on June 20 at 7 pm at the Museum S.Salvatore in Lauro. Forty-four famous Italian artists donated their works to UNHCR. The pieces will be auctioned by Christie's on June 24 at 8: 30 pm during a gala dinner. The proceeds will go towards supporting a UNHCR project for malnourished refugee children in Guinea, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Zambia.

A World Refugee Day information kit will be distributed to municipalities, NGOs, the Scouts and youth associations to help them organise their own commemoration activities. The Scout Association will distribute World Refugee Day leaflets to some 25,000 teenagers attending summer camps.