The School Project

Riad Touareg Badié - 40, Rue Berrima - Derb Touareg - Médina - Marrakech - Morocco

E-mail: Riad-Touareg@Riad-Touareg.com

The School Project in Douar-Ait-Abdi

The small Berber village Douar-Ait-Abdi is around two hours drive from Marrakech. Five years ago the village got a school. The school has around 50 boys and girls aged 7-13. There are two teachers for all students. The school day is divided into two different periods between eight in the morning and six in the evening.  The village is very poor and the school is in a bad shape, lacking basic things such as electricity, toilet, playing ground etc.  Riad Touareg Badie has initiated a socio-pedagogical project to support the inhabitants of the village in their efforts to give the children a better school with regard to the infra-structure as well as the pedagogical resources. 

To the left the two interconnected class rooms and the school yard before it was restored, and to the right some of the students in one of the class rooms before restoration. 

Restoration of the school

In cooperation with the village's local association for developing the village, the Riad Touareg Badie's school project has defined some basic tasks in developing the school. All guests and friends of the Riad Touareg Badie are invited to give a contribution, small or large. The main tasks in developing the school and basic pedagogical requisites are described below. In 2009 the renovation of the school started with economic support from the guests of Riad Touareg Badie  and a project conducted by students on the IB Diploma Programme at Katedralskolan in Lund, lead by Birgitta Roupé.

The economic support coordinated by our school project started in 2008. This money has been directly invested in the school according to a plan for material and pedagogical restoration presented below. This plan was developed by the owner of Riad Touareg Badie, Pär Nygren, based on observations and information trough interviews with school children, teachers, parents and other inhabitants in the village and in collaboration with the local association for developing the village. The responsibility for the restoration work is the president of the local village association for Douar-Ait-Abdi, together with the secretary of this  association. In 2009  the local authorities for the municipality gave the permission to start the restoration work at the school according to the proposed plan from our school project.

After an electrician and a represents from a local small building company had inspected the school, the association for the village represented by the secretary of the local association, Omar Aatabi, collected information about the detailed prices for the work planned by the school project.  The plan  for the work was in 2009 outlined as in the table below. The local election was held on the 25.6.09 and the new board of the association had a meeting directly after this election. On this meeting the plan shown in the table below was confirmed and the work started at 24.10.09 in accordance with the plan below.

At the time for the start of the school project, the roof was leaking and the school was without electricity. The conditions for teaching and learning in both class rooms was very bad in the cold seasons. Down to the left a picture of one of the class rooms reveals its bad condition of the walls and the windows before restoration.

The picture to the right below shows a ruin beside the school. The plan is to restore this house to a study room and a library.

The restoration work has given important results as can be seen on the newly taken pictures of the school and the classrooms.

 Pictures of the school in mars 2010

Electricity is connected, there is a new roof, new windows, the walls are painted in- and outside and the school yard is being prepared to give the childfren opportunity to play outside.  For overview of the tasks in the restoration work and of what is accomplished and stil remains, see the updated plan below.

Give your contribution!

The contributions to the project is transferred directly to the bank account for the local association for the village: Bank: Ait Ourir centre, Marrakech; Account no 6313714u651; RIB: 225454006313714651012178;  Swift code: CNCA MAMR.

The transfers must be marked “Riad Touareg-Badie School Project for DOUAR-AIT-ABDI” in order to be registered as a contribution to the project.

Also notify the staff of Riad Touareg Badie by e-mail (riad-touareg@riad-touareg.com) with information of sum and name of contributor.

The results of the work will continuously be published on this website.  Names of contributors are also published here - see below!
 

Contributors to the Riad Touareg Badie School Project so far

Ole Dreier, Dorte Bukh, Per Christian Ellefsen, Ana Soler, Harald Solem, Marcus Nygren, Brunjylf Hangaard, Anne Britt Hangaard, Birgitta Roupé, Sigrun Skranes, Pär Nygren, Janne Skranes, Rolf Rønning, Liv Solheim, Bente Fauske, Stig Ove Fossum, Minna Fagerstedt, Kalle Fransson, Torhild Engvik, Julia Brox Skranes, Johanne Brox Skranes, Jostein Skranes Brox, Driss Molay, Stian Langeland and the students on the IB Diploma Programme at Katedralsskolan in Lund, Sweden, Birte N. Borrevik, Grete Skjaastad, Gordon Harris.
 

Web design: Pär Nygren © Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.