The territorial delegation of Mayotte was established in 1998. It now counts approximately sixty members and volunteers who are active in the fields of emergency first aid, social outreach and training. France’s 101st administrative department has been given priority by the association, who placed Overseas France at the heart of the French Red Cross when defining its 2011-2015 strategy.

Emergencies and first aid

Nationally the French Red Cross is the key actor in aid work. In Mayotte, the association’s volunteers man first aid stations forty times a year, at sports and cultural events, and intervene during emergency situations. They also organise monthly Civil Prevention and Rescue Level 1 courses (PSC1 – the former ‘Certificate of Training in First Aid’) and periodically offer free first aid courses. Since 2011, the French Red Cross in Mayotte intervenes during the Defence and Citizenship Days (JDC – compulsory for all French citizens aged 18), conducting an initiation module on warning and first aid, and trains thousands of young people annually.

Social welfare

Every week, at Passamainty, volunteers operate a vestiboutique clothes shop, enabling the underprivileged to try on and purchase clothing and accessories at low prices. The vestiboutique is open to all, with the aim of promoting social diversity and making the shop a place to meet and talk.

The delegation’s second flagship social outreach programme is the Mobile Social Team (EMS), which, since 2010, travels all over the island to meet people. EMS aims to fight hardship through information, guidance and supporting access to rights. In doing so, EMS helps to recreate social ties, advise and accompany individuals with their administrative formalities, and refer them to the relevant social and/or administrative services. Faced with a backdrop of profound institutional and socio-cultural changes, EMS plays an additional crucial role in social monitoring by going where others do not.

Lastly, in 2011, the French Red Cross in Mayotte implemented Neighbourhood Solidarity Points (ESP). As part of this programme the association supports extremely vulnerable families who have been referred by social workers, giving them food vouchers and infant formula. Through this activity the French Red Cross hopes to meet the basic needs of certain vulnerable or marginalised groups (single parents, the sick, released prisoners, etc.) through individualised attention, while recreating social links by running group workshops (cookery classes – nutrition, hygiene, access to rights, etc.).

Contact information

Address : Croix-Rouge française
Délégation territoriale
1, route de Vahibé
97605 PASSAMAINTY
Phone  : 02 69 63 20 39
Emergency  : 06 39 69 82 33
E-mail : dt.mayotte@croix-rouge.fr