Dar Si Hmad Highlights of October 2020

 

October is the month when activity reaches its peak for most NGOs working in the education field as new academic year kicks off. Dar Si Hmad, likewise and despite the pandemic, was so vibrant with the launching of numerous special events. Below find the list of the organisation’s highlights from October 2020.

Dar Si Hmad’s staff, consultants and interns have been coordinating to finalize the final steps for the organizing and participants’ selection for the Fall Season RISE program. This educational initiative is designed to train university students from the region of Souss Massa and the Province of Sidi Ifni on advocacy techniques for environmental issues. The first virtual class ran extremely well, putting the bar up for what to expect next.

Afous Ghissiki is another educational and developmental project Dar Si Hmad had running during October 2020. The beneficiaries from the two participating Oases are receiving agroecology and permaculture training and have expressed great  enthusiasm for the content of the program, and are now in the process of engaging into the applied section of it.

Always in the countryside, this last month, Mr. Governor of the region of Sidi Ifni paid a guided visit to our fog harvesting site to follow up on our plans of extending the project to Taloust pass. Progress is ongoing on our research and applied experimentation for a biological treatment and natural predator against the Mealybug to have invaded the Aït Baamran that is in the process of destroying thousands of acres of cactus fruit. This is a major highlight of Dar Si Hmad’s November activities.

Not far from Aït Baamrane, in the city of Sidi Ifni, our director Dr. Jamila Bargach has been shooting anthropology lessons as part of our Ethnographic Field School. These videos will soon be ready to share online with any potential student and university program in search for a unique study abroad program, this is to give a simple taste of the variety and wealth of the content. 

Additionally, we held our general assembly for the board members of Dar Si Hmad on the 21st of October. At the end of the meeting, Ms. Maria Laaouimir was appointed treasurer and Mr. Abdelmalek Benmoussa general secretary of our NGO’s board, with Dr. Aissa Derhem continuing as our president.

Last but not least, we at Dar Si Hmad’s staff were very happy as we celebrated our office’s administrative and financial manager receiving her Master’s Degree in Management Control, Auditing and Accounting from the ESCAE, Casablanca. A special event and congratulations to Ms Khadija Changa!

October was very eventful in Dar Si Hmad and November came in even with even more events. Keep on following us on our social media platforms to stay informed and do track the amazing work we do!