Political circumstances have left literacy rates close to zero in many of the villages around historic Timbuktu, Mali, which once boasted of the world's largest universities in the 12th to 16th centuries. Caravan to Class (CTC) seeks to provide the dream of an education for the children of Kakondji, in the Timbuktu region, by building a school in this carefully-selected village. CTC plans to help reignite the region's rich history of literacy by providing education to 120 deserving children.
The children of the nomadic Tuareg and other ethnic people of Northern Mali have never known formal schooling and all levels of government have underinvested in education. While Mali is already one of the world's most illiterate countries, with the literacy rate around 25%, the villages around Timbuktu have much lower literacy rates, close to zero. Caravan to Class' mission is to reverse this injustice and bring the dream of education, and the hope for a better life that education creates.
The three pillars of getting kids into school in the area where Caravan to Class operates, and part of Caravan to Class model to invest in literacy in the Southern Sahara Desert, are: 1) Building a safe and welcoming school building, 2) Hiring accredited teachers, 3) Providing basic nutrition, school supplies and books. By building a welcoming school environment, the school becomes a priority for the village and deepens the commitment to education.
The project will put the more than 120 children of the village of Kakondji on the path to achieving literacy. These deserving children will be educated in French, Mali's national language, and have the possibility of continuing their education past the 6th grade by passing the national entrance exam for school at the next level. The school itself is an important source of hope for the village and provides the opportunity for youth to pursue career opportunities outside of subsistence living.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
