Transform Lives through Education in Mali, Africa

The rainy season in Mali has poured down upon the school children and teachers since June. The children are watching their crops and gardens grow in hopes of a good harvest in a few months. But the rains have not stopped teachers from preparing for the new school year that begins Monday, Oct 3! Ouelessebougou Alliance (OA) sponsored a very successful teacher training with subject-matter experts in the Ouelessebougou town hall for 30 teachers (including 11 women) from our 12 partner schools. OA also held a separate training for the adult-education teachers.

Also in these past months, OA held training sessions in their 12 partner schools on the roles and responsibilities of education council members in each village. The participants, school principals, and mayors in charge of education in more than 7 municipalities learned a lot and discovered other challenges that they need help with.

One final highlight was a special training session at the OA compound for 17 school-age girls to teach them about menstrual health management (complete with distribution of reusable feminine-hygiene kits) and the female reproductive system. These kits will help the girls be able to stay in school all month long. They also learned basic principles of hygiene and sanitation, including the importance of washing hands with soap. Teningnini and Mariam of the OA staff did an excellent job teaching these happy young girls.

None of this would be possible without your donations! We thank you from the bottom of our hearts and are excited for the new school term to begin next week.