A few months ago, we told you the story of how internal migration in Senegal has impacted our work and the communities we serve.
Built in 2018, our preschool in Mbour’s Medina (locally known as Madinatou Salam) serves a unique purpose. Many of these same migrants come to settle in this district. This is the story of these families.
Climate change has grown the size of the Sahara desert, and families who live in the Sahel region of Western Africa, once a fertile yet arid plain, are now facing desertification. As they move into cities, they find themselves struggling to find work, shelter, and food.
Some of the families at our Medina Preschool arrived in Mbour with just the clothing on their backs. Many live in temporary structures built out of scavenged construction materials, work odd jobs to make ends meet, and depend on the charity of their neighbors. They come to Mbour for their children’s future, hopeful that they will be able to get an education and a better life.
The Medina Preschool is a lifeline for these families, providing a quality education in French, healthy meals through our Nutrition program, clean toilets and sanitation, and giving the parents the opportunity to work during the daytime.
“Thank you for thinking of these poor children,” says Mamadou Thiaw, the principal of the Medina Preschool. “What we are able to accomplish here together is amazing to provide hope for these children and their families.”
Of the numerous schools we have built and partnered with across Senegal, the Medina Preschool is one of the most important for the community it serves, and it shines as a beacon of light and hope in the community, promising every parent a better future for their children than the one they were born into themselves.
Your support helps us serve hundreds more children in these hard-to-reach areas of Mbour, some of the most vulnerable populations who need your assistance. Please help the children and families of Madinatou Salam and throughout Senegal by joining MAP’s Giving Circle of monthly donors.