Rabat - Five Franco-Swiss volunteer caregivers will conduct an altruistic caravan on mules called “Amoddou” to help the population of Dades Valley, an isolated village in the High Atlas Mountains of Morocco.
The caravan will take place from September 26 to October 9, 2016. It will be held in collaboration with a local association in the Dades Valley.
The 14-day initiative will consist of a medical staff including a doctor, a pediatrician, a midwife, and two nurses. They will devote their energies to help the inhabitants of Dades Valley and the surrounding area.
The medical staff will travel every day on mules to support the Dades Valley’s inhabitants through their dire daily difficulties and provide them with the necessary aid, such as medical checkups, educational presentations, and consultations.
The caravan aims to help the rural area’s inhabitants by providing them with practical techniques to manage their daily lives.
Jeremiah Thirion, a 30-year-old nurse and head of the caravan, noticed that the remote rural areas are in need of such a humanitarian initiative. “The inhabitants of isolated areas in Morocco struggle to access basic healthcare. For example, the closest hospital to Dades Valley is 50 kilometers a”, he said. ”
Dr. Lara Martinez, another member of the caravan, also noticed that the meager staff could not afford to cure the inhabitants quickly, but believes that they can benefit from the caravan’s medical services. “We are aware that we have a limited scope—we cannot treat diabetes in a few days. However, we can raise awareness among them by delivering talks about hygiene, postnatal care, sexually contagious diseases, diet, etc,” she said.
The staff finds that mules are the best means of transport throughout the Dades Valley’s: “We will have a ton of materials, and only the mules can carry them. As far as we see, a caravan of mules is better than a convoy of jeeps. It will be a discreet, credible, and less aggressive approach,” Martinez said.
“This a human-sized project. We will not change the face of the world, but if we can improve the Dades Valley’s inhabitants, it is a start.”
Meanwhile, the staff is fundraising to subsidize the cost of the caravan’s equipment and other expenses.
Photo credit: Amoddou
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