FCBARCELONA.CAT

20.10.2008 10:44

First stone laid at XICS Mali

www.fcbarcelona.cat

Building work at the XICS facility in Bamako (Mali) began this October with a ceremony to mark the laying of the first stone. The Foundation is building the first educational infrastructure in the neighbourhood.

The Foundation is taking yet another step forward in Africa with the start of building work on a new facility in its International Network of Solidarity Centres (XICS). This centre is in Bamako, the capital of Mali, in the TSF-Sans Fil district which is one of the city’s poorest neighbourhoods.

The centre should be completed by the start of next year and will give support to 120 youngsters aged between 7 and 16 who will receive training in literacy, extra school work, computers, health and safety and medical monitoring. In the mornings the centre will be a state school for local kids while in the afternoon it will become a XICS offering the usual resources of such centres. The XICS Mali will have six classrooms, administrative offices and a sports field.

Needed for a long time

The XICS Mali will meet major social and educational needs in the neighbourhood as the area has never had a school before. For years local children have had to walk long distances to school, including crossing a busy road which has led to numerous deaths amongst the youngest of them.

Local women are playing a major role in the start-up of the XICS as they have been calling for a facility like this for many years now. The Foundation has agreed to pay health insurance for all the children enrolled at the centre and for two of their nearest relatives.

Activities already on the go

As building work is carried out the Foundation has rented a nearby building to start delivering support to local kids. It is also choosing the team that is to run the centre: a director, a social assistant, two teachers and a sports instructor.