From the Director - February 2025

People often ask us about Andando’s “magic formula”—how do we continue to succeed where so many development projects struggle? I wish I could say it’s pure talent, but in truth, more often it’s diligence. We are constantly listening, learning, and adapting.

The new aquaculture fish farming basins are complete in our Mboyo Walo partner garden. The women here are quickly mastering this difficult new skill.

Take our women’s gardens, for example. To ensure their long-term sustainability, we’ve recently focused on improving financial literacy and savings. Last year alone, these gardens collectively added nearly $8,500 to their savings accounts, bringing the total balance to an impressive $41,000. And that’s on top of individual profits! The addition of fish farming has helped contribute to these results, and we’re thrilled to report that our two newest aquaculture pilot gardens are thriving, with their first harvest just a few months away!

The new pharmacist at the Paymar rural health clinic proudly displaying their full stock of medications and supplies, ready to serve members of their community.

Another example of diligence is our partner health clinic in Paymar, where the community has pooled resources to hire a new nurse and pharmacist to expand services; however, their efforts are hindered by a damaged roof. By continuing to monitor past projects and listen to partners, we can now help to resolve this issue with a new roof and possible expansion of the facility as well.

The leaders of the Haffé women’s garden sitting on the newly constructed watering basin. Soon they will transform this degraded landscape into a verdant oasis to support their families.

Lastly, I’d like to introduce you to our newest garden partners in the village of Haffé, near Keur Socé. This community has faced immense challenges establishing their garden, from flooding that delayed the project to a well that partially collapsed right when production was set to begin. However, through close collaboration with the women, village leaders, and local government, we were able to assist them in overcoming each hurdle, leaving the group of 220 women more determined and empowered than ever to start their garden.

Your diligent support of Andando allows us to continue to do this work the right way and create lasting change.

Education: The Foundation of Progress

Andando staff with faculty from the school and the mayor of Ndiédieng (center in white).

We are proud to announce a new partnership with Ndiédieng Primary School, thanks to the generosity of our supporters during the year-end giving campaign. Aid for schools, whether through school supplies, additional classrooms, or bathroom facilities, is one of the most frequent requests Andando receives. And we listen. Because we know that investing in education is one of the most surefire ways to foster long-term, intergenerational change.

Classrooms, dating back to Senegal’s colonial period, are often in an unsafe state of disrepair leading to overcrowding in newer classrooms.

Over 600 students attend this school in overcrowded, crumbling classrooms without functional bathrooms. Together, we’ll build two new classrooms, new bathrooms for girls and boys, and drinking water taps so that students have the best chance possible to continue their education and build the lives that they want for themselves.

The Keur Socé High School Garden is a vital teaching resource and source of revenue for the school.

Over the past 15 years, Andando has partnered with 20 schools that support more than 7,000 students annually. These investments, combined with Andando’s other intervention areas, are creating a powerful feedback loop of socio-economic improvements. As families experience better food security, health care, and financial stability, more children are staying in school longer, reaching middle and high school levels, which is driving an even greater demand for educational infrastructure.

This ripple effect is especially visible in Podor, where the success of Andando’s interventions has contributed to an urgent need for a new high school. To address this demand, the education ministry began offering high school classes at Guédé Village Middle School, but without adding new classrooms. The school, together with the mayor and a local parents’ group, has asked us to build eight new classrooms, renovate their bathrooms, and add a school garden.

Students at Guédé Village High School share classrooms with the middle school, limiting enrollment while more students want to come each year.

This is just one of numerous school projects that we hope to add in the coming years to continue to respond to the incredible investment that our partners and their children are making in their future.

A New Year of Hope

Dear Andando Supporters,

As we settle into the new year, and all that it brings, we want to say thank you again to everyone who gave to our year-end giving drive, which came hot on the heels of our most successful fall auction EVER! Together these two campaigns raised an incredible $98,427 to strengthen communities across rural Senegal!

The women of Korkadji are rebuilding their garden (and much of their village) after it was devastated by floods last year.

It’s this spirit of global collaboration, building a thriving world together, that fuels our hope for what lies ahead. Every day, I’m inspired by the resilience of our partners in Senegal, like the women of Korkadji, pictured above, whose garden and much of their village was devastated by floods last year. The unwavering commitment of people like you means that Andando can provide increased assistance to Korkadji this year to help them to recover and thrive.

From individual moments of support like this to our large-scale agriculture, education, healthcare and environmental initiatives, together, we are helping our partners to build brighter futures. We are excited to carry this momentum through 2025, and we can’t wait to share the new projects and opportunities on the horizon. Thank you for being an essential part of this journey.

With gratitude,

Garrison Harward
Executive Director

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In 2024 together we:

• Planted over 29,000 trees in partner gardens, schools, health clinics, and villages.

• Supported 39 women’s gardens and 1 school garden, producing over 450,000 pounds of produce and generating $152,000 in profits for over 4,500 participants.

• Extended aquaculture fish farming to two gardens in Podor.

• Constructed or renovated bathrooms at 3 new partner schools.

• 20 partner schools and over 7,000 students now benefit from improved infrastructure and sanitation facilities.

• Provided 300 microloans to farmers and small businesses, with 100% repayment!

• Constructed and equipped a new vital health clinic in the remote village of Mbida in Podor, expanding healthcare access for thousands.

• Supported 15 partner health clinics that provided 14,127 healthcare visits, including 288 babies born in a safe, sanitary environment with qualified health staff.

Diégane, Senior Director of Operations

Continuing in our series, we would like to introduce you to another member of our team who works on the ground in Senegal every day to build resilient, thriving communities. We think they are pretty amazing and are sure you will agree. This is part of a series introducing the people that make it all possible. (Click here to see others in this series.) Meet Diégane, Senior Director of Operations

Diégane joined the Andando team in July 2024.

Sustainability and local engagement are two of Andando’s core values. We know our support is temporary, so we collaborate closely with communities at every stage, ensuring they have the skills and resources needed to manage projects independently for the long term.

With this in mind, we are thrilled to introduce Diégane (pronounced Jay-gone) Ndiaye, who joined our team as the Senior Director of Operations. With 25 years of experience in humanitarian and community development, Diégane has a passion for empowering local communities so that once a project is complete they can carry on with little or no external help.

“As I always say, we are not meant to everlastingly support the communities we partner with. If we do so, we fail… So, we work with them to ignite movement, just like you push a car to start. You don’t drive a car by pushing it.”

— Diégane

Meeting with local leaders is one of the ways Diégane works to empower communities to ensure the long-term sustainability of projects.

Diégane is excited to use his deep knowledge of this field to help position Andando as a major strategic partner for the local, regional, and national government. He previously worked as the Operations Director at World Vision, after which he served as the Multi-Country Director with SOS SAHEL International France.

With 25 years of experience in humanitarian and community development, Diégane has a passion for empowering local communities. Pictured here at a community meeting in Niger with SOS SAHEL International France with the youngest village chief of the commune.

Diégane holding his first-born son, Jason in 2008.

The oldest of six children (four brothers and two sisters) Diégane grew up in a small village about 6 miles outside of Diourbel. After completing elementary and middle school, Diégane left his village to move to Diourbel and attend high school. He continued on to the University of Cheikh Anta Diop in Dakar, where he majored in American literature and civilizations. During his time with World Vision he earned a Bachelor’s of Business Administration, a master’s in project management in local development.

Enjoying a bike ride in Thies where Diégane lives with his family.

He met his wife, Marieme, in Kaffrine when he was assigned there with World Vision. They live in Thies with their three children: Jason Emmanuel (17), Jeffery Medoune (14) and Marilyn Seny Coumba (12).

Diégane is not new to Andando. In 2007 (before Andando had any staff in Senegal or in the US) he served as a volunteer by administering one of our first microloan programs. Over the years Diégane followed Andando’s progress and in 2023 he assisted with some consulting before joining our team full-time in 2024.

“To tell you the truth, I was really amazed by the awesome achievements made (the gardens, the schools, the health clinics). I said Wow! I never imagined they could achieve such great work in their size.”

— Diégane

In his spare time, Diégane enjoys gardening, biking and walking, watching TV and movies, listening to praise songs, and is an active member of his church. He also loves to spend time with his family at restaurants, while shopping, and while traveling.

Diégane’s Family (left to right): Jeffery Medoune, Diégane, Jason Emmanuel, Marilyn Seny Coumba, and Marieme.

Your support enables Diégane to help his fellow citizens. Thank you for investing in their future!

Click here to meet other staff.

School Improvements = More Students Learning

Education is one of the most powerful tools to lift people out of poverty. Parents are rightfully proud to see their children succeed in school and we share in their joy as they share how infrastructure improvements are helping their kids to be more enthusiastic about learning and staying in school!

“Students want to attend school and rush every day to meet their classmates thanks to the comfort and attractiveness of the classrooms which gives them a taste for learning and [is] producing excellent results compared to before.”

— Babacar Sow, Parent from Mbadhiou Peulh

Babacar Sow, Parent from Mbadhiou Peulh

We are excited to share with you the stories of three schools that recently received significant infrastructure improvements: Mbadhiou Peulh and Belel Kelle Primary Schools and the Keur Soce Franco-Arab Middle School.

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Classroom Construction and Renovation: Mbadhiou Peulh Primary School

Many of the students here were learning in temporary classrooms constructed each year by parents and teachers because infrastructure just couldn't keep up with growth in enrollment.

“As parents, we encountered a lot of difficulty at the start of the year in making temporary shelters so that the children could learn and attend the school,” said Moussa Sow, Parent from Mbadhiou Peulh.

Students standing outside a temporary classroom, constructed by their parents and teachers, at Mbadhiou Peulh Primary School.

The municipal government was aware of the need and started construction on two new classrooms, but unfortunately, they didn’t have the means to upgrade the existing classroom buildings. They asked Andando to partner with them and we were thrilled to be able to say YES!

The leaking roof of the existing classroom.

Construction workers in the process of removing and replacing the roof of the Mbadhiou Peulh Primary School.

The existing classrooms had a leaky roof and cracked walls, “The roof was so low and when a strong wind crossed the classroom, it lifted the sheet metal of the classrooms. We felt a lot of heat with the penetration of the wind, the rainwater poured inside the rooms in the middle of class,“ said Moussa Sow.

After only a few short months the classroom construction and renovations were complete, allowing classes to start on-time for the first time ever, with enough space for all students to study in safe and secure classrooms.

Before: A teacher instructing his students in a hot dusty temporary classroom.

After: The same teacher looking at the newly renovated classroom that has replaced it.

Since these classrooms opened last year, parents and teachers alike have noted that the improved learning environment is having a profound impact on students’ academic performance. Moussa Sow, whose own niece and nephews attend the school, compared test scores and found a notable improvement.

“At school, we notice a change in behavior among students who have a passion for learning and achieving good results…I did an analysis of the situation to better understand that there has been a clear improvement in the level of students thanks to the new building”

— Moussa Sow

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Toilets for Three Schools: Belel Kelle, Mbadhiou Peulh, and Franco-Arab Keur Soce

Aside from having a comfortable and inspiring classroom to learn in, access to water and sanitation facilities has a huge impact on student success. In schools where there are no functional bathroom facilities, students have to leave the school grounds (often returning home or visiting surrounding houses) throughout the day which is a huge disruption in their learning.

The restrooms at Belel Kelle sustained severe damage during the rainy season when heavy winds and rain tore the roof off rendering them unusable.

The restrooms at Mbadhiou Peuhl showing decades of wear from the harsh sun, wind and rain.

We believe that all students should have what they need to pursue their education. Which is why we are thrilled to meet all their needs, and toilets are a surprisingly important aspect that can keep kids from attending school, especially girls.

Students outside of their classroom at Belel Kelle school.

The need for bathrooms at Belel Kelle Primary School was especially urgent because the community recently saw a significant increase in student enrollment after the installation of a women’s garden. Mothers and children, who previously had to partake in seasonal migrations due to lack of resources in the village, can now stay home year round and this mean kids can stay in school! Mbadhiou Peulh Primary School needed bathrooms to compliment their classroom construction.

Under Construction: Masonry workers are building the walls of the restrooms, which are fortified with rebar.

Outside view of the bathrooms: two toilets for girls, and two toilets for boys. Concrete walls and floors with metal roof.

Community and school leaders standing outside the newly renovated bathrooms at Belle Kelle. In addition to replacing the roof and updating the toilets, a fresh coat of paint will protect the facility from the harsh environment. 

Over at the Franco- Arab Middle School in Keur Soce, the 206 students enrolled there faced a similar situation with no functional bathrooms on campus . Thanks to our friends at Altrusa International of Albany, Altrusa International of Pendleton, and Altrusa International Foundation though, students are now enjoying brand new accessible bathrooms with clean running water and dedicated stalls for girls and boys. This school is a vital part of the education system in the region, preparing students to enter the newly constructed Keur Soce High School.

Students standing in front of the new and functioning bathrooms at Franco-Arab Middle School – the only thing lacking is paint.

The completed bathrooms at Franco-Arab Middle School, complete with a fresh, cheerful final coat of paint.

Lack of access to adequate sanitation facilities is a huge barrier to education, especially for girls. In fact, UNESCO estimates that 1 in 10 girls in Sub-Saharan Africa miss school during their menstrual cycle due to lack of facilities or sanitary products. This is hugely detrimental to their education and increases the chance that they will drop out of school prematurely, effectively ending their chance to graduate and continue on to higher levels of education.   

Here is what Diarra Mbene, a student at the school, had to say about the project:

“We thank Andando for having built these toilets. When we wanted to address our needs, we used to go to the neighborhood to use their toilets. And sometimes we did that during class hours, which caused us to miss part of the courses.”

— Diarra Mbene, student at Franco-Arab Middle School

All told, these three projects benefit over 500 students each year, and with increasing enrollment that number will continue to rise! In addition to the direct benefits of an improved learning environment, these investments send a very clear message to the students, their families, and local leadership that we are with them for the long-haul. Our partner communities know the value of education and take great pride in providing opportunities for their children’s future. We are proud to support them and are so excited to see what amazing things these students will accomplish in their villages and beyond.

Branching Out: Tree Planting and Social Resilience

Andando’s Keur Socé Tree Nursery supporting Senegal’s National Tree Day with the contribution of 750 trees!

Thanks to support from the Rick Steves’ Climate Smart Commitment Andando’s two tree nurseries, in Keur Socé and Podor, are now producing tens of thousands of native and fruit trees each year to support partner gardens, schools, health centers, and microloan recipients.

Our team has embraced the challenge of expanding tree planting in partner communities, and their efforts are not going unnoticed. The government’s Water and Forest Guard recently asked Andando to provide trees and logistical support for Senegal’s National Tree Day, and we are now an officially accredited Civil Society Organization with the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification!

Tree project coordinator, Francois, with Technician Badiane inside the Keur Socé Tree Nursery. So far this year, our tree program has produced 48,092 trees.

Andando is stepping up in the fight against climate change while keeping the same people-centered approach that has always guided us. The scale of tree planting needed in Senegal alone is daunting. It will take millions upon millions of trees, which must be produced, transported, planted, cared for, and protected to maturity. This monumental undertaking not only requires community buy-in, but in a larger sense for there to be communities present who have the people and means to participate in these efforts.

Thanks to Rick Steves’ Climate Smart Commitment for generously supporting this project!

Andando staff loading tree saplings for a tree planting day in Togane. Our Regional Tree Nurseries provide trees for schools, health centers, gardens, and families.

While Andando is not yet on the scale of millions of trees, this is the lens through which we are approaching our contribution and why we believe so strongly in a holistic approach to community development. Our partners in the northern region of Podor have arguably the greatest need for large-scale tree planting, but we can’t bypass their other needs. For tree planting to succeed communities must be strong, which is why we are working to first ensure that villages of indigenous pastoralists have the water, food security, education, and health resources they need to stay on their ancestral lands.

Andando staff loading tree saplings for a tree planting day in Togane. Our Regional Tree Nurseries provide trees for schools, health centers, gardens, and families.

Strengthening these communities is the first step to environmental restoration enabling indigenous populations to participate as powerful partners in our global fight against climate change.

From the Director - September 2024

It never ceases to amaze me how quickly projects can progress once the preparations are in place and the funding arrives. We have a truly stellar team in Senegal, so it didn’t take long to move from breaking ground to opening the doors of our newest rural health center in the village of Mbida. I had the great pleasure of attending the opening ceremony on July 3rd and shortly thereafter the first baby was born there, a little boy whose healthy birth underlines the importance of this resource and the hope and peace of mind that it brings.

The entire village of Mbida, along with representatives from the regional Health Authority in Podor, turned out to celebrate the Grand Opening of the new health center.

More great news out of the Podor region where we are moving forward with the deep borehole well in our partner village of Senobowal. We announced this project in the article “Water for Aida” and have since raised almost half of our funding goal! This means that we can complete the borehole and solar pump system which will bring clean water to over 5,000 people. We still need more support though to add a women’s garden so please check out our GoFundMe campaign and help to spread the word about this amazing project.

Our partners in Senobowal met with Andando recently in the shade of their health center to finalize details for the borehole and garden.

In the first expansion of our pilot Aquaculture project, we recently broke ground on two new sets of fish basins in our Mboyo Walo and Mbantou Croissement partner gardens. Both gardens worked hard to join the project and we can’t wait to see the joy it will bring when they harvest their first fish right out of their own garden. We hope to expand this project in the coming years so more of our partners can gain access to improved nutrition and income.

Construction is nearly complete on our new aquaculture basins with fish set to arrive in October!

Andando is growing all the time, but we are still nimble and responsive to funding. Your support makes a difference and allows us to move projects like these forward to make an immediate difference in the lives of rural families in Senegal.

Meet Mansour, Health Program Manager

Continuing in our series, we would like to introduce you to another member of our team who works on the ground in Senegal every day to build resilient, thriving communities. We think they are pretty amazing and are sure you will agree. This is part of a series introducing the people that make it all possible. (Click here to see others in this series.) Meet Mansour, Health Program Manager

Mansour joined the Andando team in July 2024.

Health is one of the greatest assets we have as human beings. Having good health is tied to having a better life, whether that be through positive relationships or having the energy to do the things we love.  But more than that, being in good health is crucial for participating in work and educational activities.

With this in mind, we are thrilled to introduce Elhadj Mansour Diagne (goes by Mansour) who has joined our team as our Health Program Manager.  Over the past 15 years, we have established 15 health centers that serve over 55,000 people in rural Senegal.  After the initial investment in infrastructure, these centers are bravely staffed by locally trained midwives and nurses, many of whom are volunteers.

Despite the huge successes we have seen thus far, these health professionals face challenges serving their community.

This is where Mansour comes in.  With eight years of experience working in community health, he will collaborate with the Ministry of Health to expand programming and services offered at our health centers so they can make a bigger impact in fighting malnutrition and ensuring positive outcomes for mothers and their babies.

Mansour has over 8 years experience in Community Health. Pictured here in Keur Socé when he was working on a malnutrition prevention program in 2021.

“I hope to see the community’s delight at having access to health and development through [Andando’s] intervention and to have a thriving community.
I would like to see our Senegal leave this circle of developing countries and join the ranks of developed countries.
”

— Mansour Diagne

Meeting with staff of the Keur Niene Serere Health Center. Field visits are an integral part of Mansour’s (left in white) work.

The youngest in his family, after high school Mansour continued on to Alioune Diop University of Bambey where he studied Community Health.  During his time at university, he interned at regional health centers gaining hands-on experience.  After graduating he worked on a variety of community health projects including a tuberculous control program and an infant malnutrition reduction program. 

Mansour lives in Mbour with his wife, Aissatou, and their two children, Fatou age 5 and Mouhammad age 3.

Mansour lives with his wife, Aissatou, and their two children in Mbour.  When he’s not working you may find him playing soccer, raising sheep, or spending time with his family.

Your support enables Mansour to help his fellow citizens. Thank you for investing in their future!

Click here to meet other staff.

Expanding Health Horizons: Andando's New Community Health Center in Mbida

Celebrating the construction of the new health center in Mbida, Andando’s Garrison Harward shakes hands with Abdou Djiby Diallo, Village Chief of Mbida.

In a remarkable stride towards improving healthcare accessibility, Andando is excited to announce the opening of our 15th rural community health center in the remote village of Mbida. Nestled in the grazing lands south of the Senegal River, Mbida is home to over 500 indigenous Pulaar pastoralists, a population whose access to healthcare remains a constant challenge. The migratory lifestyle of Pulaar herders, coupled with the remote and dispersed locations of their villages, makes it difficult for community members to receive timely and adequate medical care. This is especially true for maternal and child health, where timely interventions are vital to improving outcomes for both mothers and their children.

The entire village of Mbida, along with representatives from the regional Health Authority in Podor, turned out to celebrate the Grand Opening of the new health center.

The people of Mbida understand the importance of healthcare and have worked to host periodic clinics in temporary structures so that their community could receive care. Despite their dedication though, the lack of proper facilities limited the services that could be provided in these clinics, and home births without access to sanitation or skilled assistance were common.

“It was difficult before we had a health center here, if someone was delivering or if you have an emergency case you have to take a donkey or horse cart [to the regional hospital] and if there’s no transportation we would call and wait for an ambulance to come and take us there. And you know it was very difficult for us.”

— Faty Aliou Diallo, Mbida Community Health Facilitator

It was for this reason that in 2023, the Health Ministry reached out to Andando to propose Mbida as the site of a new regional health center to serve 15 remote villages in the area and over 1,000 people who have never had access to proper healthcare facilities.

Cutting the ribbon at the Grand Opening Ceremony of the new health center.

Thanks to the continued support of Hub City Church of Albany, Oregon, an incredible fundraising event put on by Carreau Club of Brooklyn, New York, and generous contributions from donor Brad Barker, we were able to rapidly realize this new community facility which opened its doors at the end of June 2024.

With private rooms for consultation, delivery, and recovery, as well as solar power, refrigeration, and clean running water, the healthcare workers here now have the means to make significant improvements in health outcomes for their community.

“We are very thankful for Andando and what they have done for us.  This health center will help all the surrounding villages.  And all of them, the people, know they can come here now to receive care or to deliver here. What we see here, this center that Andando brought here, nothing like it exists in this area.  That’s why we are so happy and so proud of it. Thank you!”

— Abdou Djiby Diallo, Village Chief of Mbida

Andando is proud to partner with the people of Mbida as they serve their community and pave the way for a brighter future for generations to come.

Construction is Underway for Brand New Latrines at the Franco Arab School in Keur Soce

At the Franco-Arab school there are 226 students in attendance and no restroom facilities on-site. Students either go outside to relieve themselves, walk home to use the restroom, or do not attend school altogether (this is especially the case for young girls). But thanks to a grant from Altrusa International, Altrusa Pendleton, Altrusa Albany, and our generous donors the students at the Franco-Arab School are getting brand new latrines.

Access to sanitary and functional toilets ensure students stay in school, and reduce illness.

When we think of investing in education we may not think of latrines, but they are a vital piece of the puzzle. Many rural communities in Senegal are growing faster than their education infrastructure can handle and as a result schools lack the classrooms, resources, and yes latrines (!) necessary for students to complete their education.

Without latrines students do not have a private, sanitary option for managing basic bodily functions. This negatively impacts their learning environment as students have to leave the school grounds to use the restroom. Lack of latrines is especially damaging for female students, UNESCO estimates that 1 in 10 girls in Sub-Saharan Africa miss school during their menstrual cycle due to lack of facilities or sanitary products.

UNESCO estimates that 1 in 10 girls in Sub-Saharan Africa miss school during their menstrual cycle due to lack of facilities or sanitary products.

The Franco-Arab Middle School is an important asset to the community as it funnels students into the newly constructed Keur Soce High School. Students who complete their middle and high school careers are better equipped to find jobs that pay higher wages and make a brighter future for themselves.

Construction is underway! A big thank you to Altrusa International of Albany Oregon, Altrusa International of Pendleton, Oregon Inc., Altrusa International Foundation, Inc., and Andando supporters for making this possible.

Last year our 17 partner schools served 5,969 students. Teachers and administrators in our partner schools report an increase in student registrations, attendance, and test scores. Learn more about our education initiatives at https://www.andando.org/education

Water for Aida

“It takes a village” might be a phrase which originated in Africa, but it’s become an accepted sentiment in our modern society: no matter where you call home, everyone depends on a vast ecosystem of support for all aspects of our lives. Personal effort makes a difference, but when one or more societal infrastructures are lacking it’s all too easy for any amount of effort to fail to lift people out of poverty.

Aida Mbaye has served as the midwife in her village of Seno Bowal for over 25 years.

This is exactly what the village of Seno Bowal is facing. You may recall that last year we constructed a vitally needed health post here which was an immediate success… that is until their water tower broke down. A health post without clean running water isn’t much help. Thankfully they were able to find a temporary solution, but their water situation remains perilous.

For nearly a year residents of Seno Bowal had to rely on water brought in by donkey cart from a well six miles away.

“Here we are in a dry area, a very dry area. We do not have enough water. It’s very dry. We are not close to the river, we are not close to anything. We are depending on the rainy season.
”

— Aida, Midwife at Seno Bowal

Lack of water prevents Aida from serving her community, but an even bigger problem is that the community cannot survive without water. Water is life!

Mother and daughter walking outside the village of Seno Bowal.

Bodiel Fall (left), representative of the village chief, first alerted Andando to the issue and helped to develop our planned intervention.

Seno Bowal is the water source for 10 villages and over 5,000 people, along with an additional 30,000 livestock! It is a vital regional resource, but unfortunately, they have struggled with insufficient water and breakdowns for years.

The good news is that the problem is solvable! The constant breakdowns stem from piecemeal temporary fixes which never addressed the root cause of the problem: an undersized well which simply can’t meet the demand.

Seno Bowal’s water tower, which has the potential to provide water for 10 villages and over 5,000 people!

We need your help to get water for Aida and her community.

We can drill a new deep borehole well which will solve this problem once and for all! Once the water problem is solved, we can then install a market garden which will not only provide year-round food for all 2,200 residents of Seno Bowal, but also help them remain on their ancestral lands.

Photo Caption: Members of Seno Bowal who will benefit from a new well and market garden that will allow them to remain on their ancestral lands.

How can we help?

We need to raise $50,000 to fix the water problem and install a new market garden. Will you walk alongside Aida so she can continue to provide quality medical care to her village and not have to worry if the water will turn on?

From the Director - April 2024

Greetings from Senegal! I am currently here working with the our team to finalize our projects for 2024, so stay tuned to hear about all the exciting new partnerships that your support is making possible.

Thiam, Andando’s Podor Programs Manager, meeting with the village of Mbida to formalize our partnership to build a new health post.

In the meantime, we have some incredible news out of Podor where we have broken ground on our 15th health post in the remote village of Mdiba! This project has been in the works for a long time, and thanks to your incredible support during our year-end giving campaign, along with the continued generosity of Hub City Church, we were able to say yes to this community! We gave them the good news over the phone, but the conversation didn’t get very far as everyone started cheering and celebrating.

This currently barren land will be the site of another life-changing health post. What is now dusty and dry will become a bright, cheerful, and safe place for expectant mothers to give birth with the support of experienced midwives.

Andando’s newest partner garden in Wouro Kelle is off to an incredible start harvesting over 5,000 lbs. of produce already in their very first season! Their dedication and hard work is proof of how much our partners value this opportunity and why we must keep pushing into more remote and underserved areas where few if any other NGO’s are operating.

Fatou Sékke shows off her harvest for the day. Over 5,000 pounds of produce has already been harvested by the women of Wouro Kelle in their very first season!

“We are really happy with this garden. We grow so many vegetables and all organic. We notice now our health is improving.”

— Fatou Ibra Sékke

Lastly, thanks to the help of Rick Steves Climate Smart Commitment, our tree nurseries in both Podor and Keur Soce are starting to produce tens of thousands of native tree seedlings to support our gardens and regional reforestation efforts. Climate change is hitting Senegal hard, and our partner communities have asked us to help them to regreen the Sahel. We could not be happier to be able to support them in this ambitious goal.

All of Andando’s partner communities are coming together this year with the goal of planting 100,000 trees!

Thank you for everything that you are doing to help our partner communities to thrive.

Aquaculture: A Game Changer for Market Gardens

The members of our pilot gardens have mastered the aquaculture process, from fish breeding all the way through to harvest.

After two years of diligent work on our pilot aquaculture project, our team and partners agree: it is an absolute game changer for market gardens! We went into this project with high hopes but a healthy dose of skepticism. Would we be able to sustain perpetual production, could we develop sustainable supply chains for fish feed, and what would the impact be on the gardens’ precious water resources?

Carefully tracking the number, weight, and health of the fish enables participants to maximize growth and use fish feed most efficiently.

Watching our partners master the process and slowly answer these questions over the past two years has been incredible. The hard data shows the success in numbers; each of our pilot gardens have increased their yields and profits dramatically, all with zero net increase in water use. More importantly though, the participant testimonials show the real impacts:

“Our children and everyone in the house eats fish from the project now. We get money from the fish, and we use the water to irrigate our crops which helps them to grow. We really see the effect in the garden.”

— Koumba Daga, Irasso Garden participant

“We don’t trust the fish from the market. It comes from the ocean, and we don’t know how old it is. Now we have our own fish right here. We can go now and have it right away and cook it immediately. We thank god for this.”

— Racky Ndiaye, Lamarame Garden participant

Keur Soce High School joined the project as well this year with two fish basins in their new STEM teaching garden, and due to their quick success and all the benefits we’ve seen, Andando is now seeking to integrate fish farming into all of our gardens over the next several years.

Students learning hands-on aquaculture skills at the new STEM teaching garden at Keur Soce High School.

Thanks to a generous grant from The Tomberg Family Philanthropies, we are taking our first steps in this direction by extending the project to two gardens in our Podor region this year. With your support, we can expand even further and help our partners to gain greater food security, nutrition, and financial stability.

A member of the Keur Wack garden shows off her lettuce seedlings. All of our pilot gardens have increased their production of fast growing high value crops.

A Monumental Year for Education

By working hand in hand for over a decade with the Senegalese Ministry of Education Andando has been able to systematically address student needs in nearly all of our partner communities. We started by eliminating temporary primary school classrooms in remote villages and year after year as we built classrooms, students kept growing, and succeeding. Soon the obstacle became access to middle schools, and then high schools. Andando’s intervention grew right along with the children of our partner communities until we arrived at this monumental year of education for Andando with the completion of Ndiawara Middle School, Donaye Taredji High School, and Keur Soce High School. Here is what one of the teachers in Keur Soce had to say about the impacts they are already seeing:

“If today we have a high school, it’s thanks to Andando. And we’re very thankful to you, who provided us with classrooms the way they should be with floors and walls well made. Before, the classes we had were shelters with lots of dust. The effects of the dust on the kids and their clothes was so bad. Now that we have clean floors, we can work without getting dirty. We say bravo to Andando.”

— Mr. Touré, Science Teacher at Keur Soce High School

When talking with the principal of Donaye Teredji High School we also learned that 100% of the students who took the advanced S2 science course, held in the new classrooms we constructed passed their exams!  Because of this tremendous success and the improved school infrastructure the Education Ministry has decided to offer the highest high school level science course, S1, here in the fall of 2023.  This is the first time this course will be offered in the region outside of Saint Louis, which is over 120 miles away!  Very few families have the means to send their children away for school, especially to large cities, so when courses aren’t offered locally that usually means the end of a student’s education in that subject.  We are thrilled for these students’ accomplishments and are so happy that they can now continue their education without changing schools.  

Students in the advanced science class at Donaye Teredji High School who all passed their exams!

It isn’t just a lack of classrooms that can keep kids from continuing their education though. Access to sanitary bathrooms has a big impact on student success and can help to drastically increase attendance and enrollment, especially for girls.  UNESCO estimates that 1 in 10 girls in Sub-Saharan Africa miss school during their menstrual cycle due to lack of facilities or sanitary products. This is hugely detrimental to their education and increases the chance that they will drop out of school prematurely.  It is a well-established fact that when girls succeed communities succeed.

“Girls’ education strengthens economies and reduces inequality. It contributes to more stable, resilient societies that give all individuals – including boys and men – the opportunity to fulfill their potential.”

— UNICEF

One of the beautiful new blocks of latrines at Keur Soce High School.

Andando is dedicated to supporting gender equality by helping all students to stay in school, which is why we built 16 new sanitary latrines with clean running water at Keur Soce and Donnaye Taredji High Schools this year.  These facilities support over 2,000 students, more than 50% of whom are girls, so that they can focus on achieving their dreams without worry or stigma from inadequate sanitation.  As amazing as this year has been there is still a lot of work to do.  We are excited to continue listening to our partner communities and walking with them to improve education in rural Senegal.

Andando's Podor Tree Nursery is open for business!

We are thrilled to report that our tree nursery in Podor is now complete! This project is the result of years of planning and coordination with local villages, community leaders, and government agencies who all want to use trees to help fight climate change. Podor is located on Senegal’s northern border with Mauritania, in an ecological transition zone south of the Sahara Desert known as the Sahel. It is a harshly beautiful landscape which is home to nearly 500,000 people who now find themselves on the front lines of climate change. As rainfall patterns change and the oppressive hot season intensifies, reforestation of native trees is one of the most effective tools to hold soil on the land and prevent desertification.

The indigenous communities of the region remember when Podor used to have millions more trees which supported both people and livestock. Andando’s partner communities came together to ask us to help them to “re-green” Podor and this tree nursery is the first step in achieving that ambitious goal. None of this would have been possible without the support of the Rick Steves’ Climate Smart Commitment who awarded Andando a grant to build the infrastructure. We also want to thank the village Chief of Donaye Taredji, Mr. Nazzir, for facilitating the community land donation, along with our amazing field staff who worked so hard to shepherd this project through to completion.

Andando’s partner community of Togane has struggled to start trees locally due to the harsh conditions of the deforested landscape.

Andando received $30,000 from Rick Steves’ Climate Smart Commitment for this project!

The nursery is about half an acre in size with a perimeter chain-link fence, three watering basins and 10 shade structures. We plan to produce roughly 50,000 tree seedlings here each year, which requires a lot of water, so we drilled a 150’ deep borehole well on the property and installed the same solar pump system that we use in our gardens. We are thrilled with how everything turned out, and can’t wait to see this space filled with new tree seedlings!

So what happens now? Completing infrastructure is a great first step, but the end goal isn’t to build things, or even to start seedlings; in order to make a meaningful impact we need to successfully establish hundreds of thousands of native trees in the coming years. Andando cannot and should not do this on our own, so this past December we held meetings with village chiefs and women’s garden leaders from around the region to develop a community driven collaborative reforestation plan which meets the economic, ecological, and cultural goals of all stakeholders in the area. We also engaged in this same process in Keur Soce so that our first tree nursery can ramp up production and make a bigger impact in our partner communities there as well.

Community involvement at all levels of project planning, implementation, and evaluation is essential to Andando’s approach.

The only way that we can achieve our climate goals is by aligning them with the needs and desires of the people living in affected areas.

It has been a long road to get to this point, and we are still only at the beginning, but the possibilities are incredible. The challenges of combatting climate change can feel endless, but today we have one more tool to help us in this fight, and one more big reason for hope.

Slowly but surely the village of Togane is planting trees to help establish their regenerative permaculture garden. This year thanks to the new tree nursery they will plant at least an additional 500 native trees creating a self-sustaining oasis that improves nutrition, household income, and quality of life.

Aquaculture & Market Gardens: A Perfect Match!

A pilot garden member learning to access different markers for fish growth and health.

Overfishing of coastal waters and the Senegal river is leading to a decline in fish populations, making fresh fish rare and expensive in rural inland villages. At the same time, soils in much of Senegal are depleted, forcing farmers to purchase costly fertilizers which further damages watersheds and fish populations. Andando’s Agriculture Program drastically improves food security without using synthetic fertilizers, but our partner gardens still rely on natural amendments to ensure long term soil fertility, which aren’t always available. The nutritional benefits of the gardens, while substantial, also cannot make up for the lack of healthy protein sources for many families. Aquaculture, it turns out, has the potential to help solve all of these issues!

Karen, an Auburn University’s School of Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Aquatic Sciences representative, traveled to Senegal to provide hands-on training for Andando’s staff and pilot aquaculture participants.

Our garden partners started asking for help to raise fish as far back as 2017 but we weren’t exactly sure how to get started. In 2020 Andando connected with Auburn University’s School of Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Aquatic Sciences and together with their expert help and in collaboration with garden leaders we came up with a design to incorporate elevated fish basins into the irrigation systems of the gardens. The pilot project launched in 2022 with two new fish basins in each of four of Andando’s partner gardens in the Keur Soce region. Healthy aquaculture production requires daily water changes, but thanks to our existing solar pump infrastructure we were able to simply add the fish basins in “upstream” so to speak of the watering basins, without increasing water use at all. Water from the fish basins is drained to water crops each day and then is replaced by the solar pump ensuring that crops benefit from added nutrients and the fish get the fresh water they need to stay healthy.

Lamarame Garden members eagerly participating in the first fish harvest!

In a little over a year the project has already proved to be a phenomenal success. All four pilot gardens are now raising multiple profitable harvests of tilapia each year and have even succeeded in establishing local fish breeding so they can continue the project without any outside assistance. In addition to increasing the availability of fresh fish locally, the gardens have also noticed increased vegetable yields and overall garden profits. In fact the gardens participating in the pilot program now generate 38% higher individual profits per member than Andando’s other partner gardens in the Keur Soce area. Their success is very encouraging, and we hope to be able to offer the project to all of our women’s group partners in the future so that they too can gain access to fresh fish while further improving the productivity and profitability of their gardens.

From the Director - January 2024

As we move into another new year, I want to personally thank you for your support. I wish that everyone could see the incredible impacts of our work and hear the gratitude directly from our partner communities, but take a second to read these words and take them in for yourself because YOU helped to make this possible:

“As a midwife I can bear witness, all the new babies born in the village are now at least 7-9 pounds. Malnutrition has left this village; nobody is underfed now. We thank the lord, we thank everyone for this.”

— Mboyo Walo garden member

There are too many wonderful updates and stories to share, so here are just a few highlights since our last update.  Mbadhiou Peulh Primary School opened its doors this fall with three beautifully renovated classrooms and brand-new bathroom facilities.  The teachers there told us that this is the first year that classes were able to start on time with a spot for every student who wanted to enroll.

At Mbadhiou Peulh Primary school, students enjoy the renovated classrooms with enough space for everyone.

At Keur Soce High School our first-ever school garden started their first gardening campaign, which will soon support a school canteen to provide healthy meals to students from remote villages who otherwise wouldn’t have anything to eat during the school day.

Students at Keur Soce High School are improving their food security and learning practical science lessons in their new school garden.

Due to our steadfast commitment to improving access to quality education for over a decade, Andando was recently recognized with an award from Senegal’s National Minister of Education!

Andando representatives (left to right: Thiam, Fiona, Boubou, and Kevin) accepting an award from Senegal’s National Minister of Education for our significant contributions in the education sector for more than a decade.

This past fall Andando was also named as a finalist for the .ORG Impact Awards in Washington DC, out of nearly 1,000 candidates from 70 countries. We are so proud of what we have been able to accomplish together with you and our partner communities and are glad that more people are starting to take notice.

Garrison and Crystal represented Andando at the .ORG Impact Awards held in Washington DC. Andando was a finalize out of over 1,000 nonprofits from 70 different countries!

Thank you again for all you have done to support the people of Senegal and we can’t wait to make an even bigger impact in 2024!

Sustainability is NOT Just a Buzzword

Countless projects across the development sphere have well thought out plans on paper, but they aren’t able to stand the test of time. Andando does things differently in many ways, but we are not immune to one of the fundamental principles of development work: we are fulfilling needs which are beyond the means of our partner communities. So how does a community sustain a project over the long-term which they could not afford to do on their own?

Mboyo Walo Garden celebrating reaching their savings goal.

Unlike schools and health posts, Andando’s gardens have no government support to keep them going, instead they rely on savings from sales to cover future costs. This system has worked well for over a decade, but we noticed after the pandemic that garden savings started declining and were no longer sufficient to cover the larger infrastructure elements, like a solar pump.

Nguendar village leader explaining the new cost-sharing agreement to the other garden members.

Nothing about us without us.

This concept is paramount to our approach, and it was only through discussions with our garden partners that we found the cause of the problem and identified a path forward.

Nguendar garden leaders posing for a picture after signing the new 50/50 cost sharing agreement.

There were actually a myriad of contributing factors, from difficulties with the current bank, to rising seeds costs, to a general lack of understanding about maintenance and the costs involved. Together we helped the gardens change to a different more accessible bank, established our seed production program to reduce costs, and hired a new maintenance technician to help repair infrastructure and train the women in basic preventative maintenance.

Maintenance Technician Hamath repairing a solar pump controller. This new staff position supports garden participants in long-term care of garden infrastructure.

In addition to these improvements, we also agreed to sign a 50/50 cost-sharing agreement for future repairs with any garden that achieves at least 1,000,000 CFA (about $1,700) in savings. So far five gardens have exceeded this goal with many more well on their way!

Mbantou Croissement, Andando’s first garden in Podor, was the first to sign our new 50/50 cost-sharing agreement.

We congratulate these women on their amazing accomplishment and are proud to meet them as equal partners in the long-term sustainability of their gardens for years to come.

Meet Babacar, Garden Technician

Continuing in our series, we would like to introduce you to another member of our team who works on the ground in Senegal every day to build resilient, thriving communities. We think they are pretty amazing and are sure you will agree. This is part of a series introducing the people that make it all possible. (Click here to see others in this series.) Meet Babacar, Garden Technician

Babacar joined the Andando team in 2018 and has helped establish three gardens.

Babacar Sow joined our team in 2018. He is the second oldest of five, with an older sister and three younger brothers. Babacar grew up in Khelcom Biram, a small village close to Keur Soce. He attended elementary and middle school in his hometown and continued on to high school at Ibrahima Diouf High School in Kaolack (a 30 min. drive from Keur Soce).

Babacar (left) with friends and colleagues during his agriculture training.

Having grown up working on his parents farm, Babacar possessed a natural gift for agriculture and was selected to join a specialty agriculture training center to further develop his skills. The program also focused on developing leadership skills, facilitating partnerships, computer literacy, and financial management. At the completion of his training, the National Agency for the Promotion and Employment of Youth put him in contact with Andando, and we asked him to join our team in 2018.

Babacar and Fatou at their wedding, May 2022.

In 2022 Babacar married Fatou, one of his childhood friends, and they welcomed their first child, Ibrahima (named after Babacar’s father) in March of last year. As is customary, they live together on a family plot in his home village of Khelcom Biran.

Fatou, Ibrahima, and Babacar in traditional dress as they attend a local celebration.

A dedicated father and brother, Babacar spends much of his free time with his family discussing goals and life plans for the future, as well as enjoying nature documentaries and listening to music-- Alfa Blondie is his favorite musician. He also enjoys spending time in nature, especially visiting the forest and the beach.

“Nature nourishes my soul. When I am in nature I feel happiness. I really like the color green which nourishes me and pushes me to go towards the forest and nature. I enjoy discovering the savanna, trees, and animals because I am a pure villager.”

— Babacar

Your support enables Babacar to help his fellow citizens. Thank you for investing in their future!

Click here to meet other staff.

Public Interest Registry Names Andando as 2023 .ORG Impact Awards Finalists, Padma Lakshmi to Host

Public Interest Registry (PIR), the people behind .ORG, named the finalists for the 5th annual .ORG Impact Awards and announced that Padma Lakshmi—activist, author, and host/producer of Hulu’s Taste the Nation—will host the awards ceremony where the winners will be revealed on November 16 in Washington, D.C. The program recognizes and rewards outstanding mission-driven individuals and organizations from around the world for their positive contributions to society.

Andando is named as a finalist in the Community Building category for their outstanding work in Senegal aiding rural communities to break intergenerational cycles of poverty and create lasting positive change especially for women and girls. This is the first time that Andando’s achievements are being recognized at the global level which is both an honor and a great opportunity for a larger audience to engage with their work.

Andando’s women’s gardens, health posts, schools, and microloans work together to help communities to lift themselves out of poverty.

Andando’s holistic, community centered approach to poverty reduction has affected over 50,000 people in some of the most remote and underserved villages in Senegal.  Partnerships last a minimum of 5 years and can include interventions in food security, healthcare, school infrastructure and microfinance, all depending on the needs and desires of each community. To date Andando has constructed and supports 40 women’s cooperative gardens, 65 classrooms, 45 latrines and has distributed over 2,000 microloans.

“We are honored to welcome our 2023 .ORG Impact Award Finalists into our growing community of changemakers, who inspire us to make the world a better place. We created the awards to celebrate those within the .ORG Community who work tirelessly to uplift their communities—and this year’s finalists represent hope for a brighter future” said Jon Nevett, President, and CEO of Public Interest Registry.

From food justice to health advocacy, Lakshmi is a passionate and outspoken advocate in the mission-driven community

“We also are thrilled to have Padma Lakshmi join us to celebrate the immense impact of the OIA finalists, winners, and .ORG community at our awards ceremony. A changemaker herself with an inspiring advocacy background, Padma will bring new energy and celebration to this year’s awards.”

Andando’s Executive Director Garrison Harward along with Development Director Crystal Kelley will travel to the .ORG Impact Awards celebration where the winners will be announced. 35 finalists, out of nearly 1,000 candidates, will attend the ceremony where the .ORG of the year winner will receive a donation of $50,000 with the other category winners each receiving $10,000.  

“It’s an honor to be a finalist for such a prestigious global award. If we are lucky enough to win our category or even .ORG of the Year 100% of the funds will go directly into life changing projects for a new rural community in Senegal. Beyond that though we hope that more people will see what we are doing and want to get involved. The impacts we’re achieving are truly incredible.”

- Garrison Harward, Executive Director

Public Interest Registry (PIR) is a nonprofit that operates the .ORG top-level domain—one of the world’s largest generic top-level domains with more than 10.8 million domain names registered worldwide. .ORG is open to everyone, providing a global platform for organizations, associations, clubs, businesses and individuals to bring their ideas to life. PIR has been a champion for a free and open Internet for two decades with a clear mission to be an exemplary domain name registry, provide a trusted digital identity and help educate those who dedicate themselves to improving our world. PIR was founded by the Internet Society (internetsociety.org) in 2002 and is based in Reston, Virginia, USA. Visit www.TheNew.org for more information.