Education Niger Project #8785

Empower girls in Niger for change via education

by Les amis de Hampate Ba

Project Report | May 31, 2018
DISCOVERING NEW HORIZONS THROUGH ART

By Sher Betz-Cooper | Co-founder

Dear Friends,

Our new Art Program for Girls has been rising to new heights :

- The art classes have expanded both in number and in the variety of projects over the last few months since March and we are so pleased with the results !

- In February, during the visit of the Association’s President from Paris to the Hampaté Bâ School in Niamey, we stopped by the after school optional art classes on site that we are financing, to deliver art supplies that we wanted to donate to the program. At that time, we noticed that the art classes were overcrowded due to the growing popularity of this new art program and the talented and enthusiastic Art Teacher, Mr. Désiré.

« I have so many ideas and so many techniques to show to the students. I want
to teach them more than just simple drawing. I’m so amazed to see the progress
the students are making ! » remarked Mr. Désiré.

« I never held a paintbrush before and I never knew how to draw. I feel relaxed
when I come to this class and I like to see the artwork of my friends too. » Farida mentioned to us.

« I like this class because I am calm and concentrated and I discovered that I
can do things I didn’t know how to do before. I like to share my drawings with my
friends . It makes me feel good. » commented Aminatou.

We pointed out to Mr. Désiré that the art projects needed more space and less students per class, and he accepted with glee to double the number of classes, allowing more students to participate in smaller groups. This gave the students more ease to carry out their projects and now there are never more than 20 students per class. The classes are given at three levels : 6ème, 5ème and 4ème. (6th, 7th and 8th grades).

We are moving ! We are active! The supplementary art classes filled up very rapidly and new art projects took off very fast as their novelty had a large appeal. One week after our visit, there were 3 new additional art classes set up, with inspired students coming to attend those classes despite the 45 degree heat in May!

What are these new art projects that have attracted so many of our girls?

Mr. Désiré did not disappoint us with his innovative ideas. During the next 3 months, one group of students decorated their own t-shirts, learning the technique of batik. Each student came with their own white t-shirt, which became a beautiful colorful t-shirt with great designs. The students were delighted to learn the technique of batik which requires a lot of patience.They were also proud to wear the t-shirts on the last day of class.

Another great project was oil painting on canvas. The students had done drawings before, but never had actually painted on a canvas, which required new techniques, dexterity and concentration.

« I like to paint because it is relaxing and I am in a world of silence, concentrating on my artwork. I don’t think about how hot it is and I have a feeling of accomplishment when I leave. And Mr. Desire is always giving us good advice to improve » observed Fadimata.

With the end of the academic year approaching, we are happy to see that students have their own hand-made t-shirts and are ending the year with new skills. The students proudly displayed their t-shirts and canvasses to the delight
of the school community on the last day of May, just before the final exams took place.

There is still a lot to be done and yet this project has proved its worth already in a short amount of time by providing the girls with confidence, with new skills and with ideas for future jobs.

We are presently raising funds to be able to continue the doubled number of art classes next year to give opportunities to a larger number of deserving students.

Thank you so much for your continued support which means so much to us all, in France and in Niamey. We wouldn’t be able to provide this opportunity to our girl students today without you . We are very grateful.

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Mar 5, 2018
There is More to Sewing than Meets the Eye!

By Homa Kombo | Field Coordinator

The Home Economics classes that our Charity Association finances at the Hampaté Bâ School in Niamey introduce underprivileged girl students to the world of sewing. Besides encouraging their creativity, sewing strengthens their focus, fine motor skills, and hand-eye co-ordination. It is also exciting and empowering for the girls to create an item from scratch all by themselves!

By nature, sewing is the perfect tool to fight poverty: it can be done at home and it requires little investment. As a business, it serves the family as well as the local community. Therefore, the sewing classes we support at Hampaté Bâ School also focus on entrepreneurial issues, conveying basic concepts of pricing and business development. The goal being for the girls to acquire enough confidence, knowledge and autonomy to be able to start their own textile-based business if they wish to do so.

But there is more to these classes than meets the eye: the girls also learn to follow directions and practice math skills. The embroidery classes are especially very demanding. Students are required to follow detailed instructions to learn the different embroidery stitches and the precise techniques needed for each one to obtain different effects. Regularity is essential as well as skills in positioning the needle and the thread and also the way to hold the fabric tight or loose in relation to the needlework, We are talking about artistry and precision at a high level!

Following directions is critical to any employment environment, essential in education, and basic in life. The measuring skills that come into play in planning fabric needs, placing a pattern on fabric, understanding body space, etc. help girls acquire practical math skills.

The sewing classes we sponsor at Hampaté Bâ School have recently had another unexpected spin-off: the girls’ enthusiasm for sewing rubbed off on the boys and, very quickly, the sewing sessions became co-ed!! Boys were learning to embroider and even though, at the beginning they had a harder time to learn (their small hand coordination not developing as soon as in girls), they soon got the hang of it and rose to the occasion! So, as Mariama put it : “Can boys sew? They sure can !”

Soon the entire school will benefit from this newly gained skill. The upcoming project is to stitch new covers for the school’s 20 laptops in the computer room!

We are very proud of this wonderfully rewarding project which has given opportunities to the girls and has given them the opportunity to be leaders and coach the boys ! We thank you so much for your donations which allow us to give our underprivileged students ideas for their future and an opening towards jobs to support themselves and their families. We need you to keep these projects going!

With your help, we can continue setting up worthwhile projects like this one. Please continue your donations and give now! All donations help us and the students immensely. A little goes a long way. We are so grateful for your generosity and kind gestures to give these students a better life.

THANK YOU FOR MAKING A DIFFERENCE! BE THE CHANGE!!

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Dec 5, 2017
Empowering Girls for a Brighter Future

By Homa Kombo and Sher Betz-Cooper | Field Coordinator and Treasurer

Life is tough for poor girls in Niamey. Because of culture and tradition, they are regarded as second-class citizens. And often they cannot continue their studies after primary school as their parents cannot afford uniforms or supplies. Poor girls rarely get the support they need to continue through middle and high school.

Hampaté Bâ School holds tremendous promise for underprivileged adolescent girls and their futures. When school is safe, affordable, accessible and relevant, parents are more likely to keep their daughters in school rather than marrying them early. Through school, girls can acquire life skills that will help them delay marriage and pregnancy, and break the cycle of poverty.

Les Amis de Hampaté Bâ flagship funding program provides support to girls from the start of middle school to completion. The scholarship scheme targets disadvantaged girls with a high risk of dropping out. The support covers school fees, uniforms, school equipment and nutritious school meals. We give our girls the opportunity to complete a full cycle of middle and secondary school, which is a seven-year period in Niger.

You can help us turn disadvantaged young girls into young change agents who have the power to inspire and mobilize others for positive action. They can encourage the questioning of traditions and beliefs that limit lives and choices, and build better lives for themselves, their families and their communities.

The benefits of educating girls and young women in Niger are immense. Girls who go to school and stay in school are able to find jobs, and they spend most of their incomes on their families. They marry later and have fewer and healthier children.

“My father was not opposed to educating girls, but he did not have the means to send me to middle school. So he wanted to marry me off. Thanks to the scholarship I have now, my father brags about his educated daughter,” says Anissa who will hopefully graduate from high school this year.

Big or small, all your donations are crucial to helping these girls out and breaking the poverty cycle. Please consider supporting them. We need your help to give them an education and realize their dreams.

Your generous donations finance scholarships for these underprivileged girls and give them a chance to go to school, stay in school and get a quality education. Your donations will also save them from early marriages by giving them the opportunity to learn and realize that they have the potential to succeed professionally as women

We need you! Bring a smile to these girls’ faces. Be the difference ! It’s the time to give a gift, the precious gift of education!

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

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