Friends of Morazán (FoM) is a registered charity (no.1111253) based in Bristol with a committed team of voluntary trustees.  It builds on Bristol’s twin city relationship with the municipality of Puerto Morazán in Nicaragua which has 24 communities and a population of 16,000.  Puerto Morazán is the poorest region of Nicaragua, which is itself the second poorest country in the western hemisphere.

While primary and secondary education in Nicaragua are free and compulsary, preschool teachers do not receive a salary from the goverment and parents take on the responsibility of managing the schools.  Many preschools do not have access to clean drinking water or toilets and some are forced to meet under a tree as they do not have a classroom.  In a country where the climate produces torrential rainfall and temperatures that regularly reach 30°, there is a strong need for sheltered classrooms.

Families and communities in Puerto Morazán have expressed their desire to secure the wellbeing and future educational prospects of their young children.  In support of and in partnership with Puerto Morazán’s families and communities, Friends of Morazán aims to:

• Relieve the effects of poverty in Puerto Morazán by providing financial aid and other humanitarian assistance to support educational and health initiatives.
• Give Nicaraguans solidarity in their struggle to provide a higher standard of education and living conditions for all, and a better future for the children.
• Advance the education of, and raise awareness amongst the public in Britain, in particular Bristol, of cultural and social issues related to Nicaragua.

To learn more about the municipality of Puerto Morazán, watch this short film made by a volunteer during his visit in 2009.

Part 1

Part 2