Mobile Mini Circus for Children

by Gianni Giosue

Mobile Mini Circus for Children (MMCC), is an International NGO which has been operating in Afghanistan since 2002. Their main goal is to provide education to children in Kabul. At the Children’s Culture House pupils can learn how to juggle, do acrobatics, sing and dance. About 100 well-trained Junior Artists regularly perform in Kabul and 16 other provinces in Afghanistan, as well as Europe and Japan.

In Spring, 2006 a new Afghan-MMCC organization was established. The local NGO is gradually taking responsibility for continuing the activities as a pure Afghan project as MMCC International expands to more countries.

Like all the traditional circuses, MMCC is also mobile thanks to a bus which allows the children and their teachers to travel all over Afghanistan. They not only perform juggling and acrobatics but they involve the audience by teaching them about environmental and cultural issues.

MMCC is a wonderful and very positive idea. The children can go to normal school in the morning and then attend the Circus School in the afternoon. Many of them are able to communicate in English and they gave me amazing access to the project. The fact that they travel brings new opportunities to the provinces of Afghanistan, which do not offer the high degree of education normally found in Kabul.

Working with MMCC gave me great insight of the Afghan psyche; they are extremely friendly, welcoming and respectful people. Although the people of Afghanistan have gone through three decades of war, they are still able to laugh and share a joke. These children represent a very positive aspect of the future of Afghanistan.

Gianni Giosue On behalf of MMCC