It is a fairly uncommon site in Male’, if not anywhere else in the world. A young Superman is sliding down the banisters of the capital’s national stadium, closely followed by a no-less fearless Snow White, several fairies and a princess, all while several marching bands provide a regimented soundtrack to the high-energy goings-on.
Rather than a colourful breakdown of order in Male’ amidst present political tensions, the event held in the capital yesterday represents attempts by a growing number of NGOs to provide fundraising and awareness programmes aimed at children in the run-up to the holy month of Ramazan that begins in August.
Local NGO Tiny Hearts of Maldives and the Advocating the Rights of Children (ARC) organisation have both this weekend launched initiatives designed to capitalise on the charitable spirit said to be at the heart of Ramazan.
Tiny Hearts race
Tiny Hearts, which was set up three years ago to help local youngsters suffering with Congenital Heart Defects (CHD), yesterday organised a fancy dress run attended by 400 pre-school children. The event was supported by a number of organisations like the Diabetic Society of Maldives, Maldivian Red Crescent, the Scout Association of Maldives and the Maldives Girl Guide Association.
Five pre-schools participated in the race, including the Galolhu Madhrasa, Hulhumale Preschool, Maafannu Madharsa, Sheikh Abdul Rahman Preschool and Zaailing Preschool.
Music during the event was also provided by the brass bands of Iskandhar School, Jamaaludheen School and Imaadhudheen School.
According to the local charity, the ‘Race for Tiny Hearts 2012’ project was focused mainly on promoting physical activity in young Maldivians, whilst trying to encourage parents to do more at the family level to promote heart health.
Having previously been involved with high-profile attempts in the country to raise funds for its work, including an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to make the record books last year, CHD was not the sole focus of yesterday’s event for Tiny Hearts.
The charity nonetheless said that it had been able to raise awareness of both its own and other charitable organisations’ commitments and aims during the two hour event.
“We aimed and managed to engage various other institutions to work actively alongside charitable organisations to achieve goals that benefit society,” Tiny Hearts stated.
While yesterday’s series of races served as a fun family event for participants, Tiny Hearts has claimed that during the last three years, it has not only provided advice and awareness campaigns regarding CHD, but to also provide logistical and financial support in ensuring there is hope for child sufferers of heart defects.
The NGO estimates that 250 CHD patients have been able to fly abroad for specialist surgeries and healthcare, while the group has also worked to bring paediatric cardiologists to the Maldives for more direct assistance.
ARC Ramazan collection scheme
Yesterday also saw the ARC charity launch its 2012 Ramazan collection campaign designed to collect goods and other essentials for children of all ages that are raised in shelters.
A spokesperson for the charity today told Minivan News that the scheme, which had also been run back in 2011, was designed to aid the work of three key children’s shelters in the Maldives. These shelters include; Kudakudhinge Hiya on Villingili, the Education and Training Centre for Children (ETCC) on Maafushi and Feydhoo Finolhu’s Correctional Training Centre for Children.
“Ramazan in the Maldives is a time where the majority of people went to help others and are in a giving mood. We have aimed this for now, as families will be buying lots of new things and we ask them to think of less fortunate children,” an ARC spokesperson said.
“We ran this project last year as well and found a lot of interest in people wanting to help, though not knowing how to. We looked at the needs of these shelters and have compiled a list. Collections opened yesterday (July 6) and will continue until next Saturday (July 14).”
The collections are taking place at the ARC office located on the second floor of M. Nooraaneeaage on Orchid Magu in Male’. Collection hours are between 2:00pm to 6:00pm from Saturday until Thursday. On friday, collection will occur between 4:00pm and 6:00pm local time.
According to the charity, the collection will take a large range of goods from clothing and apparel, to toiletries, toys, foods, books and stationery.
A full list of the goods needed can be read here.
Looking to its aim for the year ahead beyond Ramazan, a spokersperson for ARC said the organisation did not have a clear strategy regarding specific fund-raising events.
“We tend to work on a project-by-project basis, which has mainly seen us helping the shelters such as through capacity building initiatives and providing Parental Effectiveness Training (PET) projects for care-workers. It is important to support these care-workers as they are effectively parents to children as these shelters,” the spokesperson said.
ARC is presently involved in establishing a PET scheme amongst staff at the ETCC site in Maafushi.
The programme, which is being overseen by certified instructors has been devised by the charity in an attempt to give caregivers the means to better understand and deal with issues facing the children they look after. A similar PET programme was provided at Kudakudhinge Hiya in July 2011, the charity added.
Alongside focusing on national awareness projects relating to areas such as health and nutrition and child abuse, ARC claimed it also had a secondary function of providing sports programmes in fields such as badminton and chess to children living in the environment of a shelter. The charity has also been involved in the provision of additional assistance and tutoring to assist underprivileged children with their school work and studies.
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Dear editors
I subscribe all efforts, in particular in Maldives, to do all of this for children and the people.
Though, and this is very sad : in particular since last December, the extremist thinking people in your country do not really want this programs and projects to be done.
With few friends we were then doing volunteer work in Maldives. We have left in meantime ... after people started to call us "christian foreigners", after accusing us of coming as missionaries to your country (ironically not of us is even religious ... a misconception of the same people who think all whites are christians ...). All of that was circulated by sms, we got such messages also ourselves. When we finally left, a number of them - indeed people from PPM and DRP - where sheering at the jetty ... we have been crying for the future of your nation
Dear nancy. Happy that you did some 'volunteer' work here. But if you feel that you are not welcome here, just go to a country where you will be welcome. There are plenty of poor countries around; in Africa, Asia, South America and Eastern Europe.
Our little Nancy doesnt sound like a foreigner at all. In fact, I wont be suprised if that comment came from an MDP goon. Their familiar tone of bringing up december (resignation/"coup" month), blaming DRP & PPM, and demeaning the religious people, is all too apparent in the comment.
Nancy the Imposter.
Stop denying what nancy said. He/She might not have ever volunteered in any kind of activities and might just be a Maldivian is actually talking about the ugly truth about the community ! Good Luck to all of us for the successfully making another Afghanistan !