World on a Wall

Schools in Senegal have very few resources. Usually a class might share one textbook and much of the instruction is done by copying what the teacher writes on the chalkboard.

Andando has done a few humanitarian projects in schools and we came up with this idea of teaching the kids about the larger world beyond their village -painting the world on a wall!

We drew the borders of all the countries in Africa, and in the bottom left of the wall, an enlarged map of Senegal, with the main cities.

There are now two schools in Senegal with a new mural on their walls.

The first photo is from the vilage of Keur Soce, south of Kaolack, and the second one is at a school in Yoff, part of Dakar , the capital of Senegal.

The extra bonus is that the whole community has the opportunity to enjoy the map.

Extra special thanks to Lewis and Ruby for heading up this rather daunting project. They made it look easy. (It wasn't!)

Women's Empowerment

In Liberia, a country recovering from years of civil war, unemployment is extremely high and there are very few opportunites, especially for women.

Last summer, our partner in Liberia approached us with a proposal to start a training program for women. Andando agreed to fund a six months training program for women . 600 women enrolled in two locations near the capial, Monrovia.

The women have been receiving instruction in hairdressing, sewing, cooking and soapmaking. The six months program is now ending and many women are now doing internships with the hope that this will lead to permanent employment for some of them.

Andando hopes this effort will lead to a brighter future for these women as they work to support themselves and their families.

Well done ladies!

Omar Kebe

Last time we were in Keur Soce, Senegal, we spent the day looking at projects, doing interviews and video.

And everywhere we went , this young man seemed to appear a few minutes later. He was very sweet and polite and every time we spoke- maybe half a dozen times that day- he would say, in English. "my name is Omar Kebe. My father's name is Al-haji Kebe." over and over. Turns out this was the sum of his English vocabulary, but he really wanted to practise.

So this blog post is for you Omar. We enjoyed meeting you and won't soon forget you( or your name. Or your father's name.)

a Garden in the Desert

After our first round of loans was repaid in Keur Soce last year, some of the women got together and discussed some ways they could pool together their profits in a way that would benefit their families and community.

The result is an amazing two hectare garden with lettuce, corn, okra, carrots,peppers,tomatoes, cucumber and about 50 cashew trees.

180 women are involved in this garden. They have divided themselves into 18 groups of ten. Each group tends it's own area and they have morning and evening shifts for watering.

All of the water for this garden is provided by a well that Andando had dug previously. The women expect this garden to provide income from market sales, improve family nutrition, with enough funds left over to buy a pump for the well so they will no longer have to draw water by hand.

The women also told us that one of the unexpected benefits they have experienced from this garden is that they have discovered a new spirit of unity and cooperation with each other.

This wonderful garden is an example of what a community can do independently when given a small helping hand.

Andando means "walking together" in Wolof the principal language of Senegal. We are so proud to walk together with these strong women!

bad bloggers

We are officially bad bloggers around here....but that's because we've been busy.
We went to Africa in January- three countries in ten days . Check our website and click on news for a few glimpses of that trip. www.andando.org
And we're leaving again tomorrow! Lots of good things happening. and we will try to do better when we return.
For now, please look at this blog and see what these two great folk have been doing on behalf of Andando in Senegal. www.lewisandruby.blogspot.com

AND stay tuned for a brand spanking new website within the next month or so!