terre des hommes schweiz has been supporting children and young people in the Sahrawi refugee camps in the Algerian desert for 20 years, some of whom lack the most basic necessities. Last summer, the Manor department store chain collected old school backpacks as part of the “Back to School” campaign for the benefit of Sahrawi schoolchildren. As a result, 1347 school bags have now reached children and young people who can make very good use of them.
In summer 2017, the Swiss department store chain Manor launched a special campaign in collaboration with terre des hommes schweiz: as part of the “Back to School” campaign, Manor called on its customers across the country to hand in school bags they no longer needed at its stores. In 64 Manor stores, 1347 rucksacks were collected. These have now reached the schoolchildren in the Sahrawi refugee camps, who are delighted with the school bags.
terre des hommes schweiz would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who donated school backpacks and Manor. Thank you very much!
Schools without school materials
The school bags are very welcome by the children: The Sahrawi government has established a state in exile in the camps with a well-functioning school system. As a result, young Sahrawis generally have a good education and a high level of literacy. This is because all Sahrawi refugee children attend school. However, they often lack the most basic school materials.
Completely dependent on external aid
The people in these camps are 100% dependent on international aid supplies. In recent years, these have steadily dwindled as funds flow to other, newer conflict regions. The situation in the camps is particularly hard for the young Sahrouis.
A conflict on standby
Around 165,000 Sahrawis have been living in these refugee camps for over 40 years. At that time, Morocco annexed their homeland, Western Sahara. Thousands of people fled to the Algerian desert, where they settled in five camps. For 20 years, terre des hommes schweiz has been supporting youth work in the camps.
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