The Ministry of Social Development and Family (MoSDF) has launched the “Walk Your Kids to School” (“Wassel Eyalak”) campaign ahead of the new school year as part of its “Back to School” activities.

The campaign intends to strengthen parental involvement in children’s lives and reinforce the family’s role as their primary partner in supporting and preparing them for a positive start to the school year.

The campaign grows out of the notion that walking kids to school isn’t merely a daily mission, but rather a renewable space for conversation, listening and bringing children closer. It is an opportunity for parents to understand what their kids are preoccupied with and engage with them in their daily details. This approach would deepen children’s sense of care, safety, and confidence, supporting their mental and educational readiness to learn and succeed.

As part of combined efforts among relevant national entities to support families and expand the societal impact of this drive, the campaign is executed in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE), the Government Communications Office, the Qatar Foundation (QF), the Protection and Social Rehabilitation Centre (Aman), the Family Consulting Centre (Wifaq), and the Centre for Parenting (Kanaf).

Director of Public Relations at MoSDF Hamad Jarhab said the campaign seeks to maintain parents’ presence in the lives of their sons and daughters and turn one of the simple daily practices into an educational opportunity with a greater impact than merely walking them to school.

The drive intends to consolidate the idea of engagement in educational and care responsibilities, Jarhab underlined, stating that family presence isn’t only connected with long occasions and times, but can be achieved through daily persistent actions to have a positive impact in terms of kids’ feeling of safety, stability and belonging to the family.

Director of the Public Relations and Communication Department at MoEHE Maryam Abdullah Al Mohannadi describes the campaign as it holds meaningful educational and humanitarian gestures, underscoring that the family-school partnership commences before students enter the classroom, through being present, showing care and staying engaged in their children’s educational journey.

She asserted that educational engagement isn’t confined to follow-up on academic feats but entails supporting students mentally and socially, listening to them and sharing their school details, thereby strengthening integration between family and school and ultimately putting students at the centre of this partnership.

Director of the Communication Department at QF Noor Saleh Al Mohannadi said the foundation’s participation in this drive stems from its commitment to backing societal initiatives that bolster tight-knit families and the positive presence of parents in their kids’ lives.

Al Mohannadi added that through QF’s platforms, its awareness centres and programmes, the foundation strives to convey the messages of this campaign to a wide spectrum of community members and confirm that walking kids to school can transcend business as usual to remain a space for conversation, listening and outreach, an opportunity to build positive memories and foster mental trust and safety for sons and daughters.
Through its initiatives and partnerships, MSDF continues to promote positive family practices and active parenting, based on the belief that 'parenting today is an investment in tomorrow's generation,' and that strong families build a stable society.