HAF and EU representatives talk with women about their experiences during the first two days of the IMAGINE workshop.

March 22, 2022–During the second day of the IMAGINE workshop for Yamna Cooperative’s 18 women, they received a visit from representatives of the EU and the Agence Nationale de Lutte Contre l’Analphabétisme (ANLCA). EU’s Project Manager for Literacy, Higher Education, Research and Innovation, Delegation of the European Union to Morocco, Ghita Inchouh, and Program Manager for Education and Vocational Training Section Social and Rural Development, Silvia Favret, joined ANLCA’s representative, Mohamed Douai, in Zaouit Cheikh (Beni Mellal province) as the High Atlas Foundation (HAF) Family Literacy team delivered the rights-based empowerment workshop series to the group of women.

The HAF team talked with the representatives about the objectives of the program, which is being implemented in both the Beni Mellal-Khenifra and Marrakech-Safi regions. We will work with a total of 800 women and girls (over 14 years old): that includes 40 cooperatives benefitting from IMAGINE workshops and participatory-approach community meetings, as well as two years of literacy classes by trained instructors from the same communities. American experts from the USAID Farmer-to-Farmer program will also provide two years of technical and entrepreneurial training for the women to start and manage cooperative businesses and improve their income. Area university students, under the mentorship of their professors, will provide training and monitoring of the literacy instructors during that period, all funded by the European Union in Morocco.

Our partners did not hesitate to provide more support to HAF’s team to have a successful program. The ANLCA will provide support to this program by providing trainers and materials for literacy classes in both regions. The ANLCA trainers will do a ten-day workshop in May in each region for the university students and local literacy instructors on educational pedagogy and how to use the materials.

At the end of the visit, the women shared with our EU partners their thoughts and feelings during the first days of the IMAGINE workshop. Yamna Cooperative’s women shared their positive feedback and their willingness to start literacy classes and technical training to improve their cooperative’s socio-economic success.

This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of the High Atlas Foundation and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.