I have just returned from Senegal and there is far too much good news to wait for the next newsletter! We were fortunate to have good weather during the trip, not a guarantee in the rainy season, so we were able to see most of the new projects that we’re working on and how they’re coming together. This is just a quick overview so stay tuned for more in-depth information soon on all of these amazing projects!
Garrison and Gorgui standing with our new deep borehole well in the desert.
In the Keur Soce area work is nearly complete on our first ever school garden at Keur Soce High School. The fence, basins, and storehouse are done, leaving only the water connection to our nearby Thiako garden whose members are generously contributing their water to the school. We are so excited that this will be the first high school in all of Senegal with an integrated aquaculture training program! Work should be completed here by the end of the month, and we will share more pictures when classes start in October and garden activities begin.
The completed garden storehouse stands in front of the beautiful Keur Soce High School classrooms.
A fish basin inside Keur Soce High School Garden with Mandaw, Garden Program Manager.
Watering basins will be connected to the aquaculture system so that nutrient rich fish water can be used to water crops in the garden.
Renovations begin at Mbadhiou Peulh Primary School.
Also in Keur Soce we got to see the beginning of renovations of three classrooms at Mbadhiou Peulh Primary School. The local municipal government is constructing two new classrooms here this year but didn’t have the means to upgrade the existing classroom building which has a leaking roof and cracked walls. So at the request of the village Andando stepped in to renovate the current classrooms so that all students will have a safe and proper learning environment for years to come. We will also be adding a new block of latrines hare as well this fall!
Students from Mbadhiou Peulh Primary School in one of the classrooms that is now being renovated.
Adjacent to the existing classrooms is a temporary classroom where some students have to study in difficult conditions.
Due to the collaboration between the community and Andando all students will now study in proper safe and secure classrooms.
Madame Sekk, the head nurse of the regional hospital, facilitates a community meetings in the village of Bida in preparation to start construction on a new health post there.
In Podor we finished the selection process for our next health post which will be built in the rural community of Bida. This village is dedicated to community health with several healthcare workers already operating a seasonal clinic here out of temporary structures which must be rebuilt each year. We are proud to be working with such dedicated partners and can’t wait to see the impact that a proper health post will have on their ability to care for their community. We will share more about the incredible story of this village when we start construction here in November.
A boy from Togane stands with the papaya tree he helped plant this spring.
We are also nearly finished with construction on our new tree nursery and agroforestry center in Podor. Our borehole well drilling was a complete success, and we now have a high output water source with a solar well pump system which will enable us to produce a minimum of 50,000 beneficial native trees here each year. With these tree we will be able to speed up the implementation of new gardens and provide trees to all of our schools, health posts, and partner communities to bolster their food security, improve quality of life, and help them to restore the ecology of their lands.
Photo Descriptions: 1) Clean fresh water flows from our new well in the Podor Tree Nursery. 2) Fruit tree seedlings in the Keur Soce Tree Nursery, which has started over 15,000 trees this year! 3) Podor Tree Nursery complete with basins, storehouse, water reservoir, solar panels, and restrooms. 4) A woman from Togane stands proudly with her Moringa trees. This is the first time that this village has ever had access to this miraculous and nutritious tree.
The children of Wouro Kelle verifying the water system. This garden draws water from the local river which turns brown from runoff during the rainy season.
Last but certainly not least we visited the community of Wouro Kelle to see the completion of Andando’s 40th garden!! We are privileged to have this dedicated and deserving community join Andando at such a wonderful milestone and we can’t wait to share their story with you. Stay tuned for the next newsletter where we will profile Wouro Kelle and tell you more about the impact that this garden will have there. We would never have gotten to this point, or be able to reach such remote villages as this, without the steadfast support of our dedicated community of donors and volunteers over the past 15 years. Our hats off to you!
The women of Wourou Kelle celebrate the completion of their new garden.
It’s hard to believe but it’s already “Auction Season” for Andando, and if any of these projects resonated with you, please consider contributing in some way to help make the auction a success! We always have many more projects up for consideration than we can accomplish each year, and the success of the auction is the deciding factor on much of our yearly programing. Whether you can help by volunteering, donating auction items, spreading the word to new potential donors, or attending and bidding on some of our amazing auction items, we appreciate your support so that we can continue this vital work in Senegal.
Please consider contributing through our annual auction fundraiser. Whether you can help by volunteering, donating auction items, spreading the word to new potential donors, or attending and bidding on some of our amazing auction items, we appreciate your support so that we can continue this vital work in Senegal. More info at www.andando.org/events.