Child sponsorship update from Casablanca, Morocco

Update for child sponsors from the SOS Children's Village at Casablanca (Dar Bouazza), Morocco from Winter 2007/8.

During the second semester of 2007 three important events took place, each one highly anticipated by the SOS mothers and their children and requiring intensive planning and a significant budget.

Summer holidays (July and August 2007)
As they are each summer, the preparations before the holiday travels were the main occupation of the village. The mothers chose new destinations to enjoy a change of scene with their children under the age of 6. El Jadida, Mohammedia, Tetouan, Marrakech and Imouzzer Kandar welcomed our children who thereby discovered new faces and lifestyles. The daily routine of the village was left behind and all of the young ones were very happy to seize the occasion to learn new things and enjoy being a part of the larger society.

The children aged 7 years and older were graciously invited in small groups of 5 to 10 to participate in summer programmes organised by various national organisations who are long-time partners of SOS. They were thus offered enjoyable stays at summers camps held at the seaside or in the mountains. The children generally adapted very well to this type of community life and benefited a great about from the diverse and entertaining activities proposed by competent camp staff members. The success of the summer camps as a means to develop our children’s sense of responsibility and accustom them to integrating themselves in social situations is undeniable.

September 2007, Time to go back to school
After the summer holidays and the joyous and carefree lifestyle that the children got used to enjoying, the return to school became our main preoccupation. Some children were to attend school for the first time, while others progressed to middle school. All of the village’s children are now enrolled in school: 7% in the village pre-school, 83% in public elementary schools and 9% in middle school. If the return to school is a source of joy for some and of anxiety for others, it also represents a lot of work for the SOS mothers and older children of each family. The families have to manage their budget for books and school supplies, make sure each child is enrolled in school, and organise each family member’s new schedule. For the mothers this is an opportunity to encourage the children to take responsibility for their education and sensitize them to the importance of their studies. Thus, this period requires a particular effort on the part of our courageous mothers, and to help them with their various duties we repeated the last year’s experience of putting in place an assistance programme to accompany the children to and from school and make sure the transition to the school year went smoothly. This programme allows the mothers to work more effectively with the children upon their return home from school each day.

Events at Casablanca, Morocco

The Holy Month of Ramadan:
This year the beginning of the school year was delayed a week because of legislative elections. It thus coincided once again with the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan. This month is characterised by piety and a special shortened daily schedule is particularly appreciated by the children. They are used to the month’s special preparations and it’s fraternal atmosphere. During this month, many visitors come to the village and many programmes are organised. A new partner to our association expressed his support by organising a very animated evening in the village itself. It was a representative from Nokia who offered all the families a -ftour- (Ramadan diner) accompanied by a magic show. Backpacks and other school supplies were also distributed among the children at the time.

World Peace Day also took place during the month of Ramadan. The village opened its doors to the students of local schools and the neighboring community and participated in a football tournament along with the children of the Lieu de vie SOS and a team of brazilian players!

The mothers did not miss the opportunity to celebrate the Night of destiny (the 27th day of Ramadan) by a religious prayer and a large meal of couscous shared among with joy among the entire village.

Other events are anticipated for the end of the year, notably the holiday of l’Aid Adha (the fest of the sheep). This will be another convivial occasion of sharing and joy, encouraging a real happiness and positive development among our children.

In the name of our entire SOS team and all the families of the village, thank you for sharing with us these moments in the lives of our children. We would like to express our gratitude for your support and your generosity, and we wish you all, dear Sponsors, a peaceful and happy new year.

Mustapha YACOUTI
Village Director