Karima Rhanem, youth and civil society expert from Morocco, was the only female living in the MENA region to take part in the Young Diplomats Forum (YDF), organized by the Global Diplomatic Forum in partnership with the State of Queretaro in Mexico on June 9-13, 2014.

Karima Rhanem not only participated in plenary and workshop sessions but also led a workshop on digital diplomacy for young diplomats. The YDF is set up to recognize, enhance and develop the next generation of diplomats. This community of exceptionally bright and accomplished future leaders will gain further insight, tools and opportunities to engage with key stakeholders at a crucial time in their careers and broaden their connections to influence global leaders.

The YDF hosted an exceptional elite of young diplomats from across the world in a weeklong event that developed their skills and knowledge in areas around international affairs.

The forum included exciting field trips, interactive workshops, simulations, case studies, presentations and speeches from leaders from the diplomatic world. The visits included but not limited to the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Houses of Parliament.

The Forum tackled pressing and topical issues related to international affairs from the perspective of young global leaders. The Forum presented an opportunity for interaction and the development of skills for future senior diplomats and future leaders.

YDF 2014 programme is varied from foreign policy, to sport and public diplomacy, to energy security and other topics.

The participants present the main actors of the Forum as they form the majority of the presenters and panelists. They carried out research on the various topics for a choice of workshops and presented them beforehand. Based on their research/papers, they were selected to actively take part in different workshops.