The number of elderly people is constantly growing in Morocco.

By 2030, old people will have made up

15% of the Moroccan population, rising from 2.5 million to 8 million .Government officials and social activists say that
actions to protect these marginalized people must intensify .Otherwise , more ageing citizens will end up on the street.
Ba Mohamed , aged 72 , once lived with a loving family. Now he wanders the streets of Rabat everyday, suffering from
solitude and marginalization .He no longer receives any news from his two children , who emigrated to France 25 years
ago .After the death of his wife .Ba Mohamed continued performing seasonal work , until health problems prevented him
from supporting himself .without financial resources or help from family members , he ended up begging in the streets.
Sociologist Naima Bichri says , “ We’re seeing problems which never existed in the past .Indeed , it was rare for elderly
people to be rejected .Their families used to take good care of them .But this habit is dying out more and more
.”Nevertheless, it is important to remember that this is not the case for all families because many of them are still happy to
look after their parents and grandparents.
Hnia in her eighties , has been living with her children since her husband died 32 years ago .She organises her own
schedule of visits to stay with her eight children , who live in different towns and cities . “When I’ m bored staying with one
of them, I phone one of the others to come and collect me immediately. Whenever I’m sick, my sons pay for my treatment .I
feel spoiled even if my daughters –in-law irritated me,”she says with a broad smile.
Bichri thinks that social and economic changes have had a negative impact on social solidarity. It is becoming more
difficult for young people to support their elders, even if they want to , because of unemployment and the high cost of living
.She argues that the government and civil society should work together to find solutions to help families and provide sources.
One possible solution is that families can collaborate as part of a support work .Samira Tamiri of the Together For a
Better Future association feels that a family network could effectively help in dealing with problems facing senior citizens
.Indeed , government officials are focusing on helping families to take care of their elderly .
Adapted from : http:// www .maghrebia.com/
I) Comprehension
A) Are these statements true or false? Justify?
1. There are 8 million old people in Morocco now ………………………………………………………………………...
2. According to Bichri , neglecting old people is a new problem in Morocco ……………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3. According to Bichri , it is easy for many young people to help their elders……………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
B ) Answer the following questions .
1. What may happen to old people if the government doesn’t help them ? ……………………………………………...
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
2. Why did Ba Mohemd stop working ? …………………………………………………………………………………….
3. How did families treat their elderly in the past ? …………………………………………………………………………
4. How long has Hnia been living with her children ? ………………………………………………………………….....
C . Pick out from the text the expressions or phrases which show that :
1. Ba Mohamed’s children have abandoned him …………………………………………………………………………..
2. Hnia has a large family ……………………………………………………………………………………………………..
D Find in the text the words that mean almost the same as :
1. old ( p1) :……………………….2. effect ( p5) : …………………………3 . work together ( p 6): …………………
E . What do the underlined words in the text refer to :
1 .them: …………………………2. I : ……………………………….3.they : ……………………………………….
LANGUAGE
I) Give the correct tense of the verbs in brackets .( test your tenses )
1 )Hi Tom ,
I ‘m now in Ourzazate. I ( come ) ………………………………here four days ago after I ( visit) ………………………….…
Marrakech .I hope by the end of the next year , I ( discover ) …………………………………..……………….many places .
 2) a) When I was your age whenever I ( to face ) …………………….….a difficult problem I solved it alone .
b ) None was killed because meteorologists ( to warn ) ………………………………………….the authorities ling before
the disaster ( take) ……………………………………….…….place
c) Tony is very competent. His boss ( to send ) ……………………………………him to attend an international conference
next month .
3) a) The city council ( to build ) ………………..…………………………a new stadium two years ago .
b) Before she became a doctor Salma ( already/ to work ) ………………….……………as a biology teacher for two years .
c) At the moment a foreign NGO ( to prepare ) ……………………….……………..a huge project for human development .
II) Choose the best relative pronoun ( who / whose / which / where / when )
1 ) There are many people ………………………are waiting for the president today .
2) Students are sent to schools ………………….they can achieve excellent marks .
3) The girls ……………………friend is James play tennis in the club ………………my brother plays ,too.
4) The mother ……………………apartment is small is a teacher .
5) The T-shirt …………………… is blue is the cheapest in the shop .
II ) Rewrite the sentences with the words given .
1) You didn’t invite me to the party so I did not buy a gift for you .
If …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
2) She did not see the advert as a result she did not correspond the company .
If …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3) John missed the bus thus he stayed at home .
If …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
4) I did not understand the lesson since the teacher did not explain the lesson well.
If …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
5) I had some problems with my friend because he did not tell me the truth.
If ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
6) Student got bad marks because the exam was very hard .
If …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
7) I don’t concentrate in the class so I don’t understand the lesson .
If …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
****1) His sister did not read the book. He wishes…………………………………………………………………
2) I did not revise for the test. If only…………………………………………………………………………………
3) Real Madrid did not win the cup . The funs wish ………………………………………………………………………
4) The player did not accept the offer. If only…………………………………………………………………………...
5) I’m poor . I wish ……………………………………………………………………………
6) John insulted him yesterday. John wishes …………………………………………………………
II) Rewrite the sentences with the words given .(purpose )
1) Hanane organises a party . She wants to celebrate her success. ( so as )
………………………………………………………………………………………………….……………………………………………………………
2) Samir wanted to travel , she got a visa .( so as )
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
3) Jamal trains hard . He does not want to lose the match . ( so as )
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
4) I prepare my projects . I want to finish it very soon. ( so that )
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
5) The students will not revise .They have much free time . ( but )
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
6) Nabil invested a lot of money . He didn’t get much in return (though)
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
7 ) the kid was creative .He didn’t win the prise ( despite )
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
8) The actor committed a crime .The fans are supporting him .( despite )
......................................................................................................................................................................
WRITING : are you with or against going to stadium and why ?