Zawaya

State, society and charitable commitment in the Maghreb

By: Nabila Saidoune

Morocco was the first country in the Arab world to organize “Sidaction” in 1994, and the second in the world after France. The country has taken the lead in terms of public awareness of the danger of AIDS.

Generally speaking, however, “telethons” are shyly present in Maghreb TV studios. Culturally speaking, sincere donors are not accustomed to the media coverage of their donations. In terms of local customs, when it comes to charity, discretion is part of the act of charity itself. A pious donation is necessarily addressed to God, and not to the material beneficiary. Besides, God alone is entitled to know about the generosity of people.

Therefore, many people with goodwill refrain from participating in these cathodic quests, and focus on traditional channels instead (zaouias, mosques…) in order to express their altruism, or engage in charity in their own environment (parents, neighbors).

Traditional modesty does not prevent thematic shows from being organized sometimes, or even rarely, by Maghreb channels. In a society, where – according to universal evolution – appearance is gradually taking precedence over essence, these programs attract individuals who feel the need to exhibit their altruism. However, the willingness to help is there. The populist atmosphere in the studios can ignite some kind of emulation that leads to a kind of charity bidding among viewers.

The most troublesome barriers to massive awareness campaigns are related to the governance mode of the region’s States. The prevailing feeling is that if the nation’s resources were used wisely, there would be no need to resort to public charity in order to cover preventive health needs. This perception is particularly strong in countries with mineral rent, such as Algeria and, to a lesser extent Libya.

The corruption of leaders, who openly exhibit their ill-gotten wealth and that of their clans, discourages public involvement. People feel like compensating with their potential donations, for the money stolen by the country managers and their accomplices.

Massive awareness will certainly depend on the transparency and good governance of the affairs of the States of the region. In the current politico-social context, countries who want to incite society’s efforts to raise awareness against diseases will have to encourage the establishment and activities of professional associations, like those who already exist for certain pathologies.

This is the best way to initially involve civil society, and then apply pedagogy with citizens.