Campaign for The Gambia Africa
We are raising money for education and basic development for several small villages in The Gambia, Africa. Please consider donating and sharing this widely!
Recently, I visited The Gambia in Western Africa as a guest of my friend Yunusa Touray who was born there and has been living in Germany for 11 years. As he showed me around first the coastal capitol city of Banjul and surrounding areas, then his home village of Kerewan Touray about 4 hours drive inland, I was struck by several things including the beauty of its beaches and the general friendliness of the people. What stood out strongly was both the enormous amount of untapped potential of the land ( ie. opportunities for improvements in irrigation and farming etc.) and also the amount of garbage that was on the ground almost everywhere I went.
I discussed this issue with the Chief (of Kerewan Touray and surrounding 15 villages), as well as the principal of the local school and its area's superintendent, and they became excited by the prospect of cleaning up the village. Together we started a basic, local waste management endeavor, to change the mindset of the people and give them basic facilities for disposing of waste. The very first step: A boy named Alliou and a group of 3 other youngsters took great pride in collecting a large bag's worth of garbage from the ground of the village. We were off!
I toured the classrooms of the school and noticed the smiles and intense interest on many of the children's faces as we explained to them a new mindset surrounding the concept of garbage and cleanliness. The traditional custom of "eat and throw" was not well serving a growing and economically developing nation. The youngest children especially enjoyed first picking up the litter in their own classrooms, then a school wide effort to begin to clean all the exterior grounds of the school.
In addition, the new principal has already built a garden and has begun to train the children in the science and art of food production. We will be adding egg laying chickens soon.
We have implemented the beginnings of a simple, effective waste management system and started practical education on food and wealth creation in one village and one school and we would like to expand this initiative first to the surrounding 15 villages and 21 schools, then beyond. Your funds will go towards education of the school children and village leaders and towards buying waste bins and transport, gardening tools and supplies, and egg laying chickens. The goal is to give the villagers the opportunity to clean up the villages themselves and to bring more wealth creating opportunities for the region.
Your donations are welcome!
Please feel free to share this message widely.
