Gabou Community Resource Center

Year: 2015
Country: Senegal
Project Status: Funded
Impact Sector: Education
Project Investment: $2,362.00

Project Launch:

Gabou is a large town in rural Senegal that serves as the base for 44 surrounding villages. For the total population of 18,000 people, there are no libraries and there is very limited access to educational materials. Many students, particularly young girls, drop out as early as primary school due to the hardships they encounter trying to learn and social pressures to marry at a young age.

This project will create a Community Resource Center that will function as both a library and cyber café. The Center will be stocked with more than 500 textbooks, manuals, and books for pleasure, as well as two computers with Internet access. Monthly Read-a-Thons and book clubs will be organized to promote reading, and murals promoting girls education will be painted throughout the Center. A female community member will be hired and trained as a librarian, her salary paid by the Mayor’s office; she will oversee the Center day to day and collect payments for computer usage and overdue books, generating sustainable funding.

Project Update

The Community Resource Center is fully stocked with books, a computer, a printer, and an outdoor study area. The community held an opening ceremony where the chief of the village, director of the primary school, secretary of the Mayor's office and respected community members spoke and presented the new space. A young woman, who was unable to attend high school due to low exam scores, has been hired and trained as a librarian, providing an enriching employment opportunity. With her new role as librarian, she is a role model for other young women like her who didn't think a career could ever be a possibility. The center is open six days a week and although it has only been open for a short time, it has already become an established community resource with high levels of traffic throughout the day.

Testimonials

"Words cannot describe what an impact this Resource Center will have on women, children and the community at large. It gives them an amazing opportunity to discover the benefits of education on their own." - Ibrahima, Project Leader

"The creation of this Center marks a huge step in development for our community." - Chief of Gabou Village

"The impact of this project cannot be expressed in words. When you come back to visit in 10 years, you will see that this project has changed our community for the better" - Hammadi, Project Participant

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