Arts School for the Children of Al-Darb Al-Ahmar 

The main goal of the project is to promote the cultural activities in Cairo slum areas with the overall objective of child protection and life skills development. By achieving this objective, the implementing organization wants to create new opportunities for children and youth in the area of Al-Darb Al-Ahmar, in the fields of art and creativity. This goal will be achieved through the foundation of a school for training youth and children to prevent them from working in professions that abuse their childhood. The project also aims at raising the awareness of citizens and people of Al-Darb Al-Ahmar of the value of art and its potential economic role in community development. The project specific objectives are: (1) Expanding the school of arts that receives not less than 150 children annually, from both genders, of ages ranging between 6 to 18 years, which refines their talents and trains them on basic art skills (starting with the percussion and circus schools, with 40 hours given to the percussion training and 60 hours for the circus training, a month.). (2)Discovering new talents about 100 children a year and qualifying them to become professional artists, through opening-up alternative job opportunities in the field of art. (3) Providing social and medical care for the trainees through the provision of 6 physicians, psychologists and social workers. (4) Enabling 50 trainees to take part in musical percussion shows in the annual program of El-Genaina Theater. (5) Qualifying a group of outstanding trainees to participate in the First Arab-European Circus Festival organized by the Culture Resource which is to take place in El-Genaina Theater at the end of the year 2010, with the cooperation of the European Union. (6) Making partnerships with 6 supporting institutions, concerned with the protection and support of children and arts, before the end of year 2010.

Direct target groups are: children and youth of Al-Darb Al-Ahmar, of both sexes and of ages ranging from 6 to 18 years old, the disabled children in the district, the workers of the arts school and the community at large. The proposed CFLI contribution towards this project will allow increasing the number of beneficiaries from this initiative and will give the chance for a larger number of children in Al-Darb Al-Ahmar to be involved in the programs and activities of the Culture Resource.