Annual Report 2018
This year’s report highlights a number of stories of incredible impact. These are the stories of Rafi and other young people throughout the Scouting world.
Rafi was abandoned by his parents and made his way on the roof of a train from his tiny rural village to the chaotic central train station in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Here, he grew up facing violence on a daily basis, surviving only on his wits and a fair amount of petty-thievery. Through Scouting he has been offered the chance to find a better life and to find himself.
And just like Rafi, meet Abdul, stateless, yet making a new life in one of the largest refugee camps in the history of the world; and Wissem, in Tunisia, who could have easily taken a different path towards radicalism. Each has faced the unimaginable, and found themselves, their “inner leader”, and taken action.
"I have been amazed by their stories. See what a few years of care and attention, skilful local leaders and a well-run Scout programme can do to help these young people find a purpose in life. It shows me that Scouting works in extreme situations just like it does in my local Scout Group. And it shows that our investment in Scouting pays back. It literally changes the world," says Lars Kolind, Chairman of the World Scout Foundation.