Neglecting personal hygiene is considered one of the most important health problems that children suffer greatly from. Therefore, an awareness session was implemented on the 3rd of March, 2020, in cooperation with UNHCR, with the aim of raising awareness on the importance of caring for and maintaining public hygiene at the current time.

Twenty-two boys and girls attended the session that evolved around the importance of hygiene care, and the best ways to wash their hands and sterilize them, whereby a doctor from the local community volunteered to implement the latter. During the session, explanatory videos and slides_ which included the correct ways to wash hands, the importance of using sterilizers, avoiding uncovered foods, foods that strengthen the immunity, important tips for general hygiene, an educational video on how to care for hygiene, and the importance of visiting a doctor when needed_ were presented. Later on, these children had a practical session where they applied what they had learned from the videos and slides.

Furthermore, the children interacted greatly during the session, and directed several questions to the doctor, who in turn answered them all.

At the end of the session, the doctor was thanked for his considerable efforts, who in turn expressed his gratitude by saying: "Thank you for your constant protection and caring for children. I consider this to be the duty of every member of society, whereby no one should fail to provide his experiences or information in order to protect children from all kinds of danger!"

The Syrian Society for Social Development worked on selecting a group of interacting women during the Hear-My-Heart programme sessions. The number of women selected was 15 from the local community, who expressed their desire for volunteer humanitarian work. During these sessions, which lasted three months, the women were introduced to the humanitarian work and its principles, the skills facilitators should have, as well as communication skills_ which was divided to theoretical and practical sections.

Consequently, this group was able and qualified to carry out sessions for other women in Rural Damascus, Beit Al Salam Center/ Al Hameh, in cooperation with UNHCR.

The women’s interaction was great, whereby some expressed:
“For the first time in my life, I feel important, and that I am able to help others…”
“It was a wonderful experience that boosted my self-confidence!”
“Even my family noticed the positive change that occurred to me!”

Furthermore, one of the positive effects was the desire of women from the local community to undergo the same session, whereby they came to the center and underwent training.

"Through reading, I got to know many important historical figures - I read fascinating information about the planets and space. The library is extraordinary… I just love the books there!”. With these words, the children of the Bait Al Salam Center in Al Hameh expressed their happiness about the trip we organized to the Dummar Cultural Complex. The trip was carried out in cooperation with UNHCR, whereby 40 boys and girls were taken to a library within the Dummar Cultural Complex, in furtherance of the goals of the “Technology is Made for Us, Not Instead of Us” campaign. The aim of the latter was to help children discover new things, away from smart devices, and focus more on developing their talents and imrpve their social skills through various activities.

Furthermore, the children wandered during the visit throughout the library, and were helped in choosing the books they liked, whereby they had a delightful time while reading. Also, there were many challenging and intelligent games that children participated in solving.

At the end of the trip, a group of children prepared a play based on a novel they all read, and presented it in front of their friends using puppets. Thus, an atmosphere filled with joy and pleasure prevailed.