The Africa Federation Tableegh Board (AFTAB) in collaboration with the Marriage Support Group of Dar-es-Salaam Jamaat organized a One & Half Day Workshop for Engaged Couples of our community at Mehfil-e- Abbas Dar es Salaam from 3rd to 4th January 2015.
The Program was sponsored by the Federation of KSI Jamaats of Africa (AFED) and hosted by the Khoja Shia Ithna-Asheri Jamaat of Dar es Salaam.
The Sessions were facilitated by Dr. Imran Hassam, Sis. Fatema Shabir Somji and assisted by Sis. Masuma Dhanji, Sis. Shirin Jeraj and Br. Talib Sheriff. A total of 32 participants attended the seminar, though much lesser number than our expectation.
The Program was aimed at preparing the youths on the realities of marital relationships and to prepare them to embark on their lifelong journey with a positive outlook and better understanding.
The areas of discussion were:
- Spirituality/Akhlaq/Spouse Rights
- Fiqh/Intimacy/Physical Side of Marriage/Grooming
- Health & Family Planning
- Communication Skills – How to Prevent or Bridge Communication Gap
- Interaction with In-Laws
- Finance & Education
The following feedbacks were received from the participants:
- “Wish I could have had this session when I was married the first time – this would definitely have helped me then to understand issues. The seminar has taught me a lot and I am taking a lot away from it.”
- “It was an excellent seminar which has done tremendously to open my eyes to a number of issues concerning marriage that never even crossed my mind! Like the sessions on Finance and Budget in marriage, which was something very new for me. I also learnt a lot on the session of Effective Communication in regards to different problems.”
- “The session on Nikah night was extremely important – we don’t get such talks at all especially not to such detail whereas we need it! I also liked the fact that both the couples were present together – this ensures that both partners are on the same page when we begin our after-seminar lives.”
- “Having been engaged for over a year now and STILL misunderstandings crop up in our relationship once in a while, this Seminar was extremely helpful for me as it opened a whole new dimension in understanding how men and women think differently and how we approach problems appropriately as well. What I take away from this Seminar is how to act and react to different situations. The anecdotes and role playing during the seminar helped a lot and also made it very interesting.”
- “There were quite a number of sessions that really struck a chord with me. But I especially enjoyed the Language of Love session – it opened my eyes to different possibilities. The quizzes were all fun as well. The best thing about the Seminar is that I have gained a lot from it AND I have a lot of time before my marriage and I want to take most I learnt and change and improve myself further.”
- “The seminar as a whole was very beneficial and as far as I am concerned – I will definitely attend any future seminars.”
The Chairman of AFTAB, Seyed Hassan Naqvi in his closing remarks thanked the participants, stressing that they should take advantage of the Marriage Support Group in seeking advice on any matrimonial issues that they may come across and assured them of their support and confidentiality.
On behalf of Secretariat of the Africa Federation, AFTAB and DSM Jamaat Marriage Support Group we wish to acknowledge the facilitators for their excellent contribution and for conducting the sessions successfully. The Board is also grateful to the KSI Jamaat of Dar es Salaam for once again hosting the workshop.
We thank the participants for their keen participation and for their openness and suggestions.
AFTAB Secretariat