Junior Achievement Notre Quartier Certificate Award Ceremony

42 students of Association Bois Marchand Ecole Sainte Famille were awarded a Certificate of Achievement after successfully completing the JA Notre Quartier Program. The award ceremony took place on Wednesday 7 June. 

It was a special day for the 42 students of Association Bois Marchand Ecole Sainte Famille. Last Wednesday, it was with a big smile on their face and excitement that they received their certificate of achievement following their completion of the JA Notre Quartier Program. During the five one-hour sessions of the Junior Achievement Mascareignes’ program, the students learned to recognisze and understand the importance of all the economic activities present in their neighborhood.

In fact, the The JA Notre Quartier project allows pupils from the pre-vocational classes, namely grades 7 and 8, to discover their daily environment from an economic and social point of view. The goal is to help them identify opportunities for jobs and businesses in their immediate environment, namely their neighbourhood. Through the one hour sessions, the students had the opportunity to take part in fun activities, especially designed to be fully interactive between them and the volunteer trained by the Junior Achievement Mascareignes. 

The pupils had to debrief after each activity and to recall the objective of each session before starting the next one. “The JA Notre Quartier is a program that will help kids a lot. If one day they want to do a business, they can put into practice what they have learned in the program,” underlined Antonella Hypolitte, animator at the Association Bois Marchand Ecole Sainte Famille. 

The program met much success among the students. "I was very happy to be able to participate in the JA Notre Quartier program every Wednesday. Even when I was sick, I came to school so I would not miss the sessions. I enjoyed doing the sketch and I feel like I have grown and matured thanks to the program. When I grow up, I want to become a mechanic,” said Kinley Siniska. Another student, Jauffret Legrand also shared that he is very happy to have followed the JA Notre Quartier program. “I learned a lot through activities while having fun. My friends and I have all contributed to making this program interesting every Wednesday,” he uttered. 

The Association Bois Marchand Ecole Sainte Famille welcomes children who have not been able to complete their primary school education. “Currently, we have 42 young people and three teachers, the latter having received training with ANFEN. The children are much more attentive and receptive in the morning, so we focus on school work during that period. The afternoon is dedicated to activities. The aim of our school is to supervise these youngsters, who would normally have remained at home or be on the streets, and to train them so that they can become autonomous and honest and responsible citizens. The JA Notre Quartier program has helped our youth to be less shy while teaching them to communicate and interact with others,” explained Ketty Jeetun, Director of the Association Bois Marchand Ecole Sainte Famille. 

It was thanks to the financing of the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) that JA Notre Quartier was implemented at Association Bois Marchand Ecole Sainte Famille this year. Junior Achievement Mascareignes, a member of Junior Achievement Worldwide, is an NGO whose mission is to provide Mauritian youth with the tools they need to face obstacles and difficulties in the world of work, understand their social and economic environment and develop their entrepreneurial skills. Indeed the programme has allowed young Mauritians become aware of the economic environment in which they are growing and learning, and to help them find their place in it in the future. 

To achieve its objectives, Junior Achievement Mascareignes has developed a strong partnership with both the private and public sectors. In addition, a "Memorendum of Understanding" was signed with the Ministry of Education and Human Resources on 20 August 2014. The programs designed are complementary to the traditional curriculum. Through play and through the variety of interactive activities, students are encouraged to "Learn by doing".