Educate girls and fight poverty in Senegal

Thank you for supporting Women's Global Education Project and our Sisters-to-School program in Senegal! Your support helps WGEP provide critical scholarships to more than 150 girls in rural Senegal, girls who otherwise would not have the chance to go to school. You are also helping us impact 3,000 of their family members, friends and neighbors, ensuring that entire communities are invested in the future of their girls.

To illustrate the power of education to change lives, we share the personal story of one of our recent graduates, written in her own words:

My name is Amy, and I am 20 years old. I entered the “Sisters-to-School” program in 2005 when I was in elementary school, and I am now finished with high school. My parents live off weak agricultural harvests that are insufficient for feeding the family. Our house is entirely made out of mud, which is not very solid and doesn’t hold up well in strong rainstorms. My village has an elementary school; although children go, girls often leave school very early and are confronted by many problems. I help my parents in the fields and with cooking; I do everything that villagers do. But now this doesn’t keep me from passing the high school graduation test with good scores.

 I had a hard time understanding classes, and my family had a lack of means to pay for school supplies and classes. I work as a housekeeper during vacation to earn a bit of money to bring to my family and to prepare for the upcoming school year. When my mother had twins, there was no one to help her with them. So that year, she almost asked me to give up my studies to help her. I was walking 8 kilometers a day to go to high school, without eating from morning until the nighttime. It was a very difficult  year of high school.

 Fortunately, my mother heard a presentation by teachers and understood the importance of education. The “Sisters- to-School” program educated our parents so that we could find tutors in Sokone, and came to our aid in many ways. I received  trainings, counseling, and advising. The program paid for my medications when I was sick. Tutoring helped me to better understand my classes, particularly classes like French and Spanish, for which I received high scores on my high school exams.

I will soon be attending college education. I will make the education of my daughter a priority because education is the key to success in life. I want to continue my studies through a PhD. My dream is to succeed and get a good job to help my parents out of poverty and suffering. I especially want to participate in the development of my country. I dream that this can become a reality!

Links:

• Learn more about WGEP!