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As part of activities that marked Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Schenker’s visit to Laayoune on Saturday, the Moroccan NGO TIBU Maroc launched an education center set to benefit some 200 young Moroccans.
TIBU Maroc, whose acronym stands for “Teamwork, Innovation, Binding, and Uprightness,” is a non-profit organization launched in 2010 by young Moroccans passionate about basketball. It aims to promote the sport in Morocco.
Being the first of its kind in Morocco, the TIBU association helps in training young basketball players and assisting the technical staff for an international level. The group also hopes to inspire young Moroccans to take up basketball skills and attendant values, such as team spirit, solidarity, fair play, and fortitude.
The new TIBU education center in Laayoune aims to develop cognitive and socio-emotional skills and promote sustainable transformation through sport.
TIBU Maroc launched the new center in partnership with the US embassy in Rabat and Morocco’s Ministry of Education. The facility is the first of its kind in the Laayoune-Sakia El Hamra region and the 22nd at the national level.
According to TIBU MAROC representatives, the launch of the new center reflects both the organization’s and its two partners’ deep commitment to addressing major challenges Moroccans face.
They said the launch of the center primarily comes to contribute to youth empowerment. 200 young people are due to benefit from the new education in the coming weeks, with programs centered on teaching individual and collective techniques of basketball, languages, as well as leadership courses.
The program is also in line with Morocco’s “2015-2030 Strategic Vision,” which seeks to reform the country’s education system by building “a modern and competitive” education model.
During the launching ceremony, US Assistant of Secretary State David Schenker reaffirmed the deep commitment and partnership between TIBU Maroc and the US embassy. He also noted his country’s readiness to accompany socio-economic development and youth empowerment efforts in Morocco.
The US diplomat arrived in Laayoune Saturday morning. During his stay, Schenker toured the city, visiting the diplomatic quarter that houses consulates of several countries and the headquarters of the United Nations mission in the Sahara (MINURSO).
