1We - One World Experience for a Better World -

In Senegal and other countries in West Africa boys (from the age of four) from poor and large families are being send to small Koran schools, named Daara. These schools are led by an Oustache or Marabout, a Koran teacher who teaches the children lessons from the Koran. To teach them humility and to pay for the tuition and food they are send out ten to fourteen hours a day to beg.

Traumatized

The concept of these simple living arrangements is that the children, called ‘Talibe’, will consider the Koran the only manual for their lives. The government acknowledges the fact that the rights of these children are being hurt, but no measurements have been taken so far.

The conditions in which these children live are heart breaking, they live in slums or outside on the streets. They loose their way, cannot go to school and many of them need urgent medical care because of malnutrition. After a couple of years most children are heavily traumatized. Many of them end up as vagabonds in one of the many ghettos where they survive by doing chores, begging and criminal activities.

In Dakar the capital of Senegal alone 200,000 children are living on the streets. With the guidance of our local partner organization these children are accommodated, given education, attention and extra care. They are given a secure home until they are eighteen.

1We Slum Shops

To prevent them for ending up on the streets again 1We - One World Experience is working on creating 1We Slum Shops. The youngsters can follow an internship in these shops and further develop themselves in order to start their own company one day.

A budget of € 1,950 is enough to start a ‘Slum Shop’ and to make a difference for the youthful entrepreneurs. This amount also provides them with training and guidance. To become the owner of the shop 50% of the starting budget needs to be repaid within two years. 1We will invest this money in starting more mini companies according to the same concept.