Project Launch:

Like many big cities, Tambacounda, the largest city in Eastern Senegal has a serious trash problem. Generating income is also a major challenge, especially for women, in combination with domestic duties. A small community-based organization, Khel ak Khalath, intends to combine and address these seemingly disparate challenges in a unique, cost-effective way. Over the course of a three-day training, a group of 30 women will learn how to best collect, sanitize and crochet into marketable items from the plastic bags that are so pervasive in the streets of Tambacounda. Participants will be trained to successfully showcase their products via regional artisanal fairs, local markets and through the small local tourism industry.

 

Project Update

Success! The local women's group cleaned the area around a local orphanage and learned to crochet decorative pieces from collected and sanitized trash. In addition to cleaning the area of trash and building a relationship to the local orphanage, the women's group raised 9,000 CFA from the sales of their crafts, which is nine times more than what they predicted they would raise!

 

Testimonials

"This was one of the most rewarding project I have done during my service. I had been wanting to connect with the SOS orphanage since the beginning of my service, but had been having trouble creating the bridge between my service and community members at SOS. This training created that bridge. The community near the SOS orphanage prior to this training was covered in dirty plastic bags- now it is cleaned up, as is the orphanage. Now, several SOS mothers can take trash that was previously just thrown on the ground and turn it into toys or decorations. I have met new friends, saw women develop new creative outlets, and watched women grow more confident in their abilities to crochet and speak about environmental stewardship." - Ivy, Peace Corps Volunteer