Field report from Mopti, Mali

Zakaria* finally escapes unpredictable work patterns

SOS Children's Villages Mali has been running a family strengthening programme since June 2005 in Mopti, set around the SOS Children's Village Socoura. This district was chosen taking into account the presence of the village and fate of many vulnerable families living in the area.

Mopti is the poorest region in Mali. 65% of the population lives below the poverty line with less than 1 US dollar per day. The rate of schooling in the rural village of Socoura is 31% for boys and 27% for girls, lower than the national rate (58% for the boys and near 40% for the girls). The social and economic situation, extreme poverty and sickness are factors which contribute to increasing the vulnerability of children, and especially child abandonment. Most of the families live in one or two rooms without electricity; the well is the only source for water. Most of the time, sanitation is lacking, and the people are dressed poorly and have health problems.

The main target

The goal of the programme is to strengthen vulnerable families by supporting them to take care of children and prevent abandonment. The services families (150 children and 116 adults) currently benefit from also include school grants and funding for agricultural equipment and livestock to 'produce' income, as well as literacy courses for adults and training courses for women and young people. Health consultations will be carried out and in some cases, people will be given food.

The opportunity of varied work activities

Zakaria, 30, and his three children are among the beneficiaries of the family strengthening programme. "I am from the region of Mopti. I taught masonry here in Socoura. I was a mason before the programme and I laboured on agriculture. I 'worked' but not enough to fully meet the needs of my family. I have three children: one is registered on the SOS Nursery School, my daughter, who suffers from a mental condition, stays at home with her mother and the youngest (one-year-old)."

"I have been integrating into the programme and then I received equipment (a cart, a donkey, two oxen and a plough). The equipment saved me! I do not to look for assignments by others anymore. I can go to the fields with my cart; I cut grass in the bush, I give a part to my animals and I sell the rest. I go to Sévaré, Socoura for the market. I also transport 'banco' - brick of raw ground, dried in the sun, used for buildings - and I use my cart for people."

Planning for the future

Looking forward to the rainy season

Zakaria can cultivate fields in winter with the plough and both oxen which he has received. "Everybody waits for winter. It is soon to come, rains start in July." In the meantime, he drives the oxen to the fields, where herdsmen take care of them. This is how he avoids catering for their fodder, which is too expensive. He is going down to the plain. "It is rice in the plain. Here is millet. The district lends me a plot of land. I will cultivate rice. I shall keep a harvest part to feed my family and sell the rest."

To manage the exit

Alpha Baba Traoré, responsible for the programme, told us about Zakaria: "He takes care of his family today. He manages to feed his family. We have a vision for the programme: we want to support the families to take care of their children in different areas (well-being, health, schooling, food and supplies)."

There are different ways of providing help: business - micro-credit -, agricultural equipment for those who work the ground, like Zakaria, food support for persons who are unfortunately not capable to work for healthy problems. These persons got 40 kg of rice, 25 kg of millet per month, and they provide milk to babies during the first two years. All the children beneficiating of the programme are registered either with the nursery school or the school.

Zakaria is going to leave the programme in October, after one-and-a-half years, to give an opportunity to another person in need. But besides his financial autonomy and the capacity to generate income, we will make sure that the other part of the programme, namely sensitive aspects related to the rights of the child will be well-integrated.

Providing for the local community

Basic level of amenities for all

Today, Zakaria feels independent and he is working every day. "I have achieved a lot of things through benefiting from the programme. I built the kitchen and an adjacent room, where the roof is still missing.

"I also built latrines. It is the minimum of comfort that I have to provide to my family! My main preoccupation today is to increase my income so that I can buy sheet steel and finish the last room I have built!"

Increasing the number of beneficiaries

The family strengthening programme of Mopti sustains 19 young girls for vocational training in dressmaking. There is another family strengthening programme in Sanankoroba, in Bamako region, which started in January 2006 with 150 beneficiaries.

The programme's goal in Mali is to increase the number of beneficiaries by supporting an additional 100 persons with each programme for the next year. A day nursery project is planned for the same year in Sanankoroba meant to support working women in need.

*For privacy reasons, we have changed the name of the programme beneficiary.

SOS Children has been working in Mali since 1987 and has two unique children's villages near Bamako and another at Mopti (Socoura). The SOS Children's Village near Mopti gives a family home to more than 130 children and about 500 children and their families benefit from training workshops, health counselling and practical support.

You can support children at Mopti by sponsoring a child.