Mohammed Manfloti_HIBAPRESS
Many male and female students in educational institutions in the Sestat province suffer from a severe shortage of school transport services. Most parents find it extremely difficult to accompany their children every morning to their educational institutions, especially for early childhood, primary, and middle or high school education. However, the mobility challenges faced by many students, particularly female students, have become a bad omen that could contribute to the spread of school dropout. This is a message that sounds an alarm to all stakeholders, including provincial authorities, elected bodies, and donor organizations, to work on developing, rehabilitating, and providing a school transport fleet capable of reaching the heart of villages and hamlets.
Here, in the commune of Mazamza Southern, specifically in the village of Oulad Chaib Oulad Azzouz Oulad Arabi and other neighboring villages, many mothers find it very difficult to accompany their young children to their primary school, a round trip of over 10 kilometers daily, in the harsh cold and heat, due to the absence of school transport services.
A group of mothers appealed to HIBAPRESS, asking them to convey their voices to the concerned authorities to find immediate solutions by allocating a fleet to transport students from the villages to their school.
A bitter reality that could contribute to school dropout, especially among early childhood and primary school students, given their young age and the long distance.
The absence of transport services in these villages prompted a woman to comment on her personal page, saying:
"A distress call from the village of Oulad Chaib – Sestat Province… Where is our children's right to education??
Young children, 6 and 7 years old, travel kilometers to reach school, with no transport, no good roads, no safety.
In the morning, it's cold and dark, and in the afternoon, they return tired, hungry, and exhausted. As for summer, let's not even talk about it due to the distance and the scorching sun. Many girls have stopped studying because the road is far, and their parents are afraid for them."
The woman, "N," concluded her post by sending an urgent appeal to the Governor of Sestat Province, the President of the Provincial Council, the Provincial Directorate of Education, and the commune of Mazamza Southern, Sestat Province.
HIBAPRESS has closely followed the extent of the suffering experienced by students in some rural communes. Most students moving from primary to middle and high school find it very difficult to adapt to this situation due to their increasing numbers compared to the inadequacy of school transport. Some have to wake up before dawn to reach their educational institution, which requires providing a sufficient fleet to meet the demand and allow all learners to benefit from it without exception, to support and encourage schooling, especially among girls, in line with the conservative rural family values.
