SOS Villages d'Enfants Monde today announced that ten boxes of clothes have been sent to vulnerable people in Mali following a mass clothing collection action organised by students at the Sportlycée Luxembourg.

The campaign was held with the support of Stëmm vun der Strooss in Luxembourg and of SOS Villages d'Enfants Monde in Mali, as well as from companies such as European Logistics Partners and Cargolux. The ten boxes of clothing were sent on the difficult journey to Mali in July 2015, where they were distributed amongst the students of SOS Schools in the country, particularly in Socoura.

"SOS Mali, through me, gives special thanks to the Sportlycée for this activity which we have fully appreciated," commented Ali Ballo, Director of the local SOS Villages d'Enfants in Mali, who oversaw the distribution of the clothes. "I believe that this is the beginning of a pairing between the Sportlayée and SOS Villages d'Enfants through one of the three SOS Schools in Mali".

Director of SOS Villages d'Enfants Monde cited the campaign as an "important act of solidarity in favour of particularly vulnerable children in this country which is amongst the least developed in the world and has recently undergone an unprecedented political, economic, social and food crisis along with the spread of the Ebola virus in West Africa last year".

The SOS Villages d'Enfants Monde association has been active in Mali since 1987, assisting more than 7,100 young people and adults through its family care programmes and social and educational actions across 4 Kindergartens and 3 SOS Schools. Education, particularly for girls, and the integration of young people represent important priorities in a country where the adult literacy rate remains below 50%.

SOS Villages d'Enfants Monde financed the construction of the school in Socoura in the central region of Mopti. Opened in 2009, the school welcomes around 840 students, of which 50% are girls.

 The association supports three family-strengthening programmes in Sabalibougou, Sébénicoro and Socoura for more than 1,700 children and 350 families. In addition, it financed an emergency food aid programme in the regions of Kayes and Mopti, followed in 2013-2014 by a support and assistance project for populations affected by the conflict in northern Mali and displaced in the Mopti region.

Photos by SOS Villages D'Enfants Monde Luxembourg