Field Train Students, CSOs & Officials in Morocco

The past quarter was impressively productive, as the project team successfully completed a total of 12 capacity building workshops, round table discussions and meetings involving 345 target citizens, CSO activists, and students from the different communes of Mohammedia.

These different meetings constituted opportunities to the targeted beneficiaries to learn about public issues and acquire skills, knowledge and practical experience of relevance to the role of functioning as a citizen. Therefore, significant improvement was noticed in the level of civic engagement, among target citizens, through their active participation in community meetings, community council monthly meetings, and the design and implementation of community initiatives and projects.

Using knowledge and skills gained through the capacity building workshops provided by HAF, CSO leaders continued to use different ways to identify and recruit stakeholders to participate in the planning and implementation of community development initiatives. 13 CSO-government partnerships were created to address key social and economic issues, including a project to integrate children with Down syndrome into the education system. As a result, a specific curriculum was developed in two public elementary schools to the benefit of 45 children. A third class will be opened in school year 2014-2015, which will be dedicated to professional training for a group of 12 teenagers with Down syndrome. The program will also include different activities and performances by these children to educate the public and officials about the needs of children and teenagers with Down syndrome.

Another funded project planned and implemented by CSOs from the rural communes of Beni Yekhlef and Sidi Moussa Ben Ali have been completed in partnership with the local department of agriculture. The project received funding and in-kind donations to train poor farmers in modem agriculture practices. 250 farmers benefited from capacity building workshops in the area of drip irrigation, converting to new crops with added value and the value of cooperatives.

The coalition of CSOs in the commune of Beni Yekhlef, reported a newly signed agreement with the local delegation of the Ministry of Public health and the local hospital. With the goal to create a mobile medical unit for poor and isolated communities, this partnership will benefit over 5000 people. 

CSO leaders from the commune of Ain Harrouda reported three partnerships with the National Initiative of Human Development and were able to secure funding to help address the challenges faced by workers in the informal sector. 80 beneficiaries are currently actively participating in a capacity building program aiming at helping the workers adapt basic small business management techniques.

On the other hand, CSOs activists participated to different meetings with the local political officials as unique opportunities to influence the decision making process. In the commune of Ain Harrouda, 85 Citizens participated in a meeting with a group of 10 elected officials. The meeting aimed at reviewing and assessing the five years communal development plan and was a great opportunity for participating citizens to voice their ideas and concerns and to suggest ways to address pressing economic and social challenges. 75 citizens participated in round table discussions with public officials to develop a vision of an “ideal” city as an ambitious project to create a new city called Znata. Several challenges related to economic and social impacts of this new city were identified from this process.

35 CSO activists played a leading role in the review process of urban plans and distribution of social housing to poor families in the city of Mohammedia. The advocacy efforts of the CSOs and community citizens are showing tangible results, reflected by the ongoing participation to regular meetings with the city planners and local authorities to develop solutions to issues associated with dismantling shantytowns in the city of Mohammedia and providing subsidized housing to poor families. 

As for our trained students, 27 students demonstrated improvement in their advocacy capacity. These students, who have worked on creating Student Advocate Body as a resource that provides academic support and advocacy for students at the Faculty of Juridical, economic and social Sciences in Mohammedia, has been working with International students from Sub-Saharan countries and the University administrators to improve conditions for better integrations of international students.

Thanks to the generous support of our donors to the program, our trainees are developing their skills day after day, are successfully implementing development actions and initiatives, and multiplying the impacts of the development programs for the local communities. Thank you for helping to the creation of brighter futures for the communities of Mohammedia.