SOS Malta
A project in the framework of Promoting Development in Europe: Towards a Critical Mass and Beyond - MALTA
Mission
SOS Malta, a Maltese-registered Voluntary Organisation set up in 1991, aims at aiding people experiencing times of crisis and empowering them by providing support services and opportunities to implement development and change in their country to ensure a better quality of life. It encourages advocacy on behalf of social causes as well as promotes models of good care and practice. SOS Malta provides humanitarian aid, carries out overseas development and livelihood projects as well as focuses on migration issues. In all its operations in Malta and overseas SOS Malta promotes volunteerism for effective sustainable development. The organisation is a source of knowledge and advice about the role and contribution of volunteerism and the benefits of civic engagement.
Targets
- To raise awareness and sensitize secondary school children, their families and businesses, associations, banks and unions about the implications of lack of water supply and sanitation
- To encourage citizens to take action such as contributing to fund-raising activities aimed at financing water-based projects in developing countries
- To increase Malta's development aid targeted at, inter alia, water access and sanitation issues while ensuring a human-rights approach to how such aid is used
Activities
The ‘Water for life - Malta' project is divided into three main components:
1. Awareness-raising among members of the general public
Nov 2008 - Sep 2009
SOS Malta issued various articles in printed media as well as carrying out interventions on Magazine TV programmes. The focus of these articles was on the right to water and the difficulties which people in parts of some developing countries encounter in accessing safe drinking water.
Press coverage about these issues increased following the launch of an awareness-raising and fund-raising TV clip produced by SOS Malta. Together with local personality Claudette Pace, SOS Malta produced a 30-second and 10-second TV clip respectively, which talks about water-poverty realities in the world and appeals to the general public to contribute towards the fight against such poverty. The clip, which was aired on the main local TV stations during the months of March and April 2009, also served as a fund-raising tool, appealing to members of the general public to donate funds towards rainwater harvesting projects which SOS Malta will be implementing in countries in the South. A short radio feature was produced and was being aired on various radio stations. This fund-raising initiative was entirely financed by SOS Malta, as an annex to the Water for Life - Malta awareness-raising project.
Furthermore, a facebook account called Water for Life-Malta was set up and a blog on the Right to Water and Malta's development obligations was developed through the ‘facebook' account. The idea was to generate discussion by posting articles concerning Malta's ODA and development obligations, whilst relating the latter also to the discourse of water poverty. The activity on the facebook account gradually picked up friends counting approximately 1500 Maltese and foreign persons alike.
2. Awareness-raising among secondary school children
September 2009 - April 2009
SOS Malta organised several presentations and animation within 18 secondary schools. These educational and fun presentations were focused on providing the students with insight into issues related to the right to access to water and sanitation. They aimed at sensitizing the children into poverty-related problems surrounding water, and at bringing them to appreciate the luxury of having access to water in Malta. Topics which were touched upon and discussed included pollution, climate change, the human right to water, sanitation and water-related diseases, the effect of lack of water on village & daily life in developing countries, the Millennium Development Goals and the role which we should all play as global citizens, in addressing these issues. The presentations were delivered on a class-by-class basis in most schools - thus ensuring qualitative delivery, interaction and discussion.
Each session incorporated a short animated play, a brief DVD and a PPT-based, interactive presentation. The play involved a story based on two mascots: Sponge Bob and Alex from the cartoon Madagascar. The idea was to introduce the children to the right to water, as well as to the realities of drought and lack of water in certain African countries. The DVD used during the presentations incorporated a couple of water-related clips which SOS Malta assembled from its stock footage. The children were also shown a brief documentary called ‘Water Planet', sourced from Leonardo Di Caprio's website. Two of the volunteers (one of Sudanese origin) also addressed the children, giving a personal account about his own experience as a child lacking water supply for days and cherishing the bit he had for drinking purposes. Promotional material including rulers and flyers as well as literature on the right to water were distributed to the children during each session.
In view of complementing the school presentations, SOS Malta organised an art competition for school children aged 11-14 years, focused on the theme of the Water for Life-Malta project. The call for entries for the art competition closed on the 8th of April 2009 and the winning entry, depicting the contrast between having water and not, was submitted by an 11-year-old boy from Gozo.
3. Awareness-raising among stakeholders
May 2009 - June 2009
The work of art which won the art competition mentioned above was used as the image for a 2010 calendar which was to be distributed among public, corporate and NGO stakeholders in Malta. These include relevant ministries and public agencies, CSR companies as well as relevant NGOs. Email shots were to be sent out with a brief feedback questionnaire, enquiring about related future initiatives which stakeholders possibly see themselves getting involved in to promote HR and development issues, as well as promoting the project's blog.
In the mean time, SOS Malta secured the support of a local water-producing company for the project. Farsons Group of Companies Plc. and its subsidiary is Eco-Pure Premium Water Company Ltd. committed to supporting the fund-raising component of the Water for Life - Malta project as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility.