Help Empowerment Facilitators Reach 700 Teen Girls

Hi Friends,

Thank You for your continued support; our facilitators could not carry out the incredible work they do without your generous contribution! 

We are fortunate to have so many incredible empowerment facilitators at Project Soar, and Bouchra is definitely one of them! Bouchra, 25 years old,  has been an empowerment facilitator in Guelmim for two years now. She joined Project Soar after getting to know about it on social media and says that she wanted to be a part of it to contribute to the defense of girls’ rights and because “our society does not give real value to girls.” 

Bouchra is studying to become a nurse and wants to volunteer in other countries once she graduates, to offer help where it is most needed. She is a very active member of her community as she is also currently volunteering in initiatives related to the cultural field and to children's education. She is passionate about science and strongly believes in the power of education and the empowerment of girls.

“Children and adolescents are the most important group to work with if we want to change society positively. We want a good society for the future !”

With regard to her work in the Soar Site in Guelmim, Bouchra was an integral part of last year’s community dialogue,  which was a success as she was able to gain the trust of the families of the girls and of even some of the local stakeholders who attended.

“Last year, our community dialogue had an impact on everyone who attended.”

Bouchra continues to work on the problems the Guelmim site deals with and hopes that thanks to the efforts of the empowerment facilitators they will be able to better adjust the program to the girls. For example, as it is sometimes difficult for some of the girls to make the trip up to the Soar HQ, she plans on collaborating with the city’s responsible body that she met through the Community Dialogue, to find a more accessible location where to hold the workshops! 

When asked about the impact of the program on the girl beneficiaries she says the program and guidance of the empowerment facilitators have had a lot of positive effects on the girls, especially in regard to studies: some of the girls have even found a new ambition and want to follow in her footsteps and become nurses. Bouchra is proud to be able to help them! 

Stay tuned for more stories of these incredible women, and never doubt you are making a difference!

Warmest Wishes,

The Project Soar Team 

Hi Friends!

As we embark on a new year together, we extend our sincerest gratitude to you, our valued supporters as well as our warmest wishes for a happy and healthy year ahead.We are fortunate to have so many incredible empowerment facilitators at Project Soar, and Dounia and her sister Chaima stand out in particular.

Dounia, 23, is currently pursuing her studies to become a nurse, while her sister Chaima, 18, has recently joined the faculty of economics at the University of Marrakech. Their involvement with Project Soar began many years ago as beneficiaries, coming from a very traditional family who were originally opposed to them participating in the program. However they soon became the ones to convey their knowledge to younger Soar Girls as empowerment facilitators.The two sisters, who were raised in a remote village outside of Marrakech, did not see their future as promising when they first joined Project Soar: Dounia was supposed to be married as a child. 

“My relationship with my family was horrible because I refused to get married at the age of 16. Project Soar helped me develop my communication skills, enabling me to effectively express my opinions to my parents and siblings and share with them why I did not want to get married. It was difficult at first but I was committed. My relationship with my family has improved and I feel so proud and happy. Project Soar has changed my life.” - Dounia 

Chaima was inspired by her sister's experience and made the decision to join Project Soar as well, which motivated her to reject any pressure from her family and pursue the path she believed was most appropriate for her: “My house was not a safe space to express opinions. It is Project Soar that saved me. Now, I am strong and capable of defending myself. “  - Chaima 

By sharing their experiences, Dounia and Chaima, two strong and determined facilitators at the Douar Laadam site, assist other girls in establishing and pursuing their own ambitions: “They use me as an example and it makes me so proud” said Dounia “They are so thrilled to be here that if they could, they would participate in the activities and workshops every day!” 

They responded without hesitation when I inquired whether there were any drawbacks or challenges to their position as facilitators. The fact that some Soar Girls quit attending Project Soar due to the distance between their house and the HQ makes their work difficult and, above all, concerns them. Some of them must walk for up to two hours to attend the workshops, and because their parents are concerned about their safety, they are not allowed to walk that far by themselves, especially at night. Therefore, Dounia and Chaima are hoping to be able to offer them transportation. In order to make this happen quickly, they have already begun to take action!

It is safe to say that Project Soar could not have the long-lasting impact it does without facilitators like Dounia and Chaima, and for that, we will always be grateful. Stay tuned for more stories of these incredible women, and never doubt you are making a difference!

Warmest Wishes,
The Project Soar Team

Dear friends,

Project Soar is sending its gratitude to You, our supporters, and well wishes for good health and happiness for you and your loved ones. 

Thanks to your amazing support of this campaign, more Empowerment Facilitators reach marginalized girls living in underserved communities all across Morocco - empowering them to bypass barriers to brighter futures.
As we take stock of the amazing progress made by Soar girls this Empowerment year, we would love to congratulate all the Soar grads who completed the program - all made possible by the great dedication of the Empowerment Facilitators. Madiha is among this team, serving as Empowerment Facilitator in Azrou. Madiha is passionate about working with teen girls, and when she first discovered Project Soar she was inspired by the passion we put into helping girls stand up for themselves and pursue their dreams. She decided to join as a facilitator in 2019 with the ultimate goal of contributing to the empowerment of rural teen girls by breaking down structural barriers to girls' rights in Moroccan society! Alongside working for Project Soar, Madiha also works for her other great passion as a translator in a local non-profit organization in her hometown. She is 30 years old, holds a degree in Management and has previously worked with other NGOs such as Peace Corps and Crafting love and hope. From Madiha’s ventures in helping nonprofit organizations, she brings an amazing dedication and diverse skills to her role, which makes her an incredible role model to Soar girls!  

Madiha realizes the many challenges that can come with working with teen girls from marginalized groups, for example facing pushback or apprehension from parents who do not want their teen daughters to attend activities like Project Soar workshops. Madiha shared with us that one of the teen girls in her squad suddenly stopped showing up to the workshops even though she was one of the most passionate and involved in the group. Madiha realized the girl’s parents didn't want her to attend anymore, so she made the effort to reach out to them and  explained how important those workshops are for their daughters to learn  life-changing skills, grow stronger and reach their full potential. As the parents trusted her judgment, they allowed their daughter to  start attending the workshops again regularly! This is a testament to the trust and steadfast dedication to teen girls shown by our Empowerment Facilitators.

"My goal is to empower girls in my hometown to understand their value and make them believe in themselves so that they can reach their full potential" - Madiha, Project Soar Empowerment facilitator

Rockstar Facilitators like Madiha are part of the essential fabric that allows Project Soar to succeed in  more and more at-risk teen girls! Thank you Madiha! And thanks to all of you for helping us day after day by contributing to this campaign. Stay tuned for more stories from these inspirational strong women!

Warmest wishes,

The Project Soar team

Hi Friends!

Project Soar is sending gratitude to you, our dedicated supporters, and positive wishes for continued good health and happiness for you and your loved ones.

Our incredible Soar Facilitators have been leading many exciting initiatives and activities for teen girls over the past four months. In February we launched a new project called the BIGGER Movement (Building a Greater Girls’ Rights Movement), which aims to close all legal loopholes to child marriage in Morocco by 2025. In April, we conducted a week-long advocacy training led by 6 Soar Facilitators and our partner Mobilizing Rights Associates (MRA). Soar Facilitators are, and have always been, at the very core of the Soar feminist movement. Many Soar Facilitators wish to empower girls in their own communities since they themselves have faced challenges and setbacks because of their gender. We reached out to Kaltouma El Mostaghni, a new and resilient Soar Facilitator this year in Ouarzazate, Morocco, to learn more about her powerful story to share with you:

In 1998, Kaltouma was a child bride at 15 years old, forced to drop out of school. Unfortunately she endured intimate partner violence which later led to a divorce. Twenty years after her school drop-out and re-building her life, she returned to school and passed her Baccalaureate exam. This was just the beginning. Kaltouma is now pursuing a law degree and is enrolled at Ibn Zohr University in Agadir in the faculty of Legal, Economic and Social Sciences. Her ultimate goal is to help protect girls’ education and fight child marriage. Recently she updated Soar Program Coordinator Kaoutar Arhenbou that she passed all of her exams of the first semester with flying colors!

“After 20 years of suffering, I had to make a change. Now I want to help Soar Girls avoid underage marriage and dropping out of school.” - Kaltouma

Kaltouma is not only a brilliant student with an important objective, but also a great Soar Empowerment Facilitator helping 18 Soar Girls from underserved areas in her community of Ouarzazate to understand their Value, Voice, Body, Rights and Path. This week she is currently facilitating the 23rd of 25 weekly Soar empowerment workshops. She has also helped the girls launch their own Soar Club, and during the 2021/22 academic year she has organized 2 Soar Community Dialogues with her co-facilitator and the girls in her squad. 98 community members and stakeholders in total have attended their dialogues which addressed themes of women entrepreneurship in Ouarzazate as well as the community issue of child marriage. Kaltouma planned guest speakers at the events including female entrepreneurs, law students, and the Vice-President of the Commission for Equality and Equal Opportunities in Ouarzazate as well as the Vice President of the Regional Council of Tinghir. Their second dialogue also connected two of their Soar Girls with writing opportunities with the Association of Women Writers of Morocco in the Draa-Tafilalet region. These dialogues are bringing key community leaders in the same room with Soar Girls to push the needle for better girls’ education outcomes to protect them from child marriage.

Women leaders like Kaltouma are truly vital to the mission of Project Soar. We will continue to amplify the stories, commitment and energy that facilitators like Kaltouma bring to their communities as Soar Facilitators.

We are close to our campaign goal thanks to all of you. Your generosity has supported 76 facilitators to deliver the Soar program to over 1,150 girls in two cohorts since we launched this campaign in July 2020. Facilitators like Kaltouma remind us why it is so important to support local women to be role models, mentors and advocates for teen girls in any community. 

Stay tuned for more stories from these incredible women, and never doubt you are making a difference!

Warmest Wishes,

The Project Soar Team

Dear friends,

Project Soar is sending its gratitude to you, our supporters, and positive wishes for good health and happiness for you and your loved ones.

Project Soar is now full steam ahead with our programs, operating 37 squads across 7 regions of Morocco with a total of 71 active Empowerment Facilitators at this time. This year, as with every year, Project Soar is privileged to have strong, feminist, women mentors leading Soar Girls through our five module Empowerment Curriculum focused on Value, Voice, Body, Rights, and Path.

One such rockstar Empowerment Facilitator is Oumaima Bedduaf of Ouarzazate, who never ceases to impress us with her dedication to and passion for teen girl empowerment. A selfless leader in every sense, Oumaima has powered through the Soar Empowerment Curriculum, personally delivering 22.5 empowerment hours to 21 Soar Girls in Ouarzazate so far and is poised to host their second of three Community Dialogues that allows space for Soar Girls as well as community stakeholders to engage in conversations on gender equity challenges and brainstorm actionable ways to improve them.

Project Soar Empowerment Facilitators often times find that not only are they leaving an impact on the girls, but the girls are leaving an impact on them as well. "I find myself evolving and learning more about the girls more and more with every encounter. I make sure to treat them equally and support them when needed," Oumaima says, "I get so delighted when I hear my name is mentioned by one of their teachers or their coaches - this tells me that I am doing this right. I feel happy encouraging them to do well in their studies and I already see that their grades have improved. It is an honour for me and for Project Soar that we are able to help and guide these girls and leave a positive impact on them. Now my joy is their joy." 

Faciliators like Oumaima take this inspiration and motivation to not only deliver the Project Soar programs with passion and patience, but also continuously exceed expectations by finding additional opportunities for Soar Girls that boost their exposure to cultural events, networking opportunities and more. For example this month, Oumaima initiated a field trip to a local history museum for her squad and even brought three Soar Girls to a public speaking workshop hosted by a local non-profit. 

We are so grateful for your continued support of our Empowerment Facilitators, like Oumaima, who go above and beyond to ensure Soar Girls excel and succeed no matter the challenges they face. 

Stay tuned for more stories from these incredible women, and never doubt you are making a difference!

Warmest Wishes,

The Project Soar Team