A few months ago we started sponsoring a 12-year-old boy, Kamal, through secondary school. Kamal lives in a tiny hamlet about 5km from El Henchane (a village on the Essaouira-Marrakesh road), with his mum, dad and four younger siblings. His dad is physically disabled and therefore unable to work the small patch of land the family owns. Someone else works it for them and they share the proceeds – but even at the best of times theirs can be a precarious existence.

The teacher who suggested Kamal as a child we should consider helping, is a trusted friend and is really enthusiastic about his prospects. Last month we went to visit Kamal’s family and his mother proudly showed us his school reports: he is doing particularly well in maths, religious education and Arabic language.

We want to try to make sure he continues in school – which at the moment means him staying in a boarding hostel in El Henchane during the week, and then walking the 5km back every Friday. So we’re paying 1500 dirhams (about £120) for 2009/10 to pay for books, travel to and from the hostel, and school clothes (as elsewhere, having the right uniform and clothes can make all the difference to whether families send their children to school).

Now we are on the lookout for a girl to sponsor…