Country Profiles

granting scholarships: Batonga will support 229 girls to continue their education, all selected by community members who will be closely involved in supporting their success. All of the girls are disadvantaged in some way (they include girls orphaned by AIDS, those who are disabled, or girls who come from very poor families), yet they have taken on their personal challenges with enormous spirit, tenacity, and dedication to their education. Batonga will support the scholars from grade 7 through grade 12 with scholarship packages that include tuition, uniforms, school supplies, mentoring, and community awareness activities that broadly promote girls' education.

NGO Partner: World Education

In-country NGO partners: Association pour la Protection de l’Enfance Malheureuse (APEM) and Groupe d’Action pour la Justice et l’Égalité Sociale (GAJES)

granting scholarships: 20 girls, all AIDS orphans or from families affected by AIDS, have been awarded secondary school or post-secondary scholarships. Once they begin their first year of secondary school in September, this same scholarship will be paid annually by Batonga until they graduate. The scholarship includes tuition, uniform, school supplies, mentoring and community awareness programs.

In-country NGO partner: African Action on AIDS (AAA).

granting scholarships: 12 girls who are AIDS orphans will receive support and scholarships for higher education. They are among more than 600 children who have lost their parents to HIV/AIDS and who are receiving community-based care and support through an Ethiopian NGO called Hope for Children. This NGO works in both Addis Ababa and Babile. The 12 girls receiving Batonga scholarships for post-secondary school education will receive support for tuition, school supplies and mentoring.

In-country NGO partner: Hope for Children.

granting scholarships: 75 girls have been awarded scholarships in Kidal in northen Mali, one of the toughest and most isolated places in the world. These girls, all of whom are disadvantaged, have overcome daunting obstacles to pursue their education. Batonga will support the scholars from grade 7 through grade 12 with scholarship packages that include tuition, uniforms, school supplies, mentoring, and community awareness activities that broadly promote girls' education.

NGO partner: World Education.

In-country NGO partner: Aide à l'Enfant du Désert et du Sahel (AEDS)

building a school: a new secondary school for girls is being built in the capital of Freetown, and once completed it will be run as a government school. While there is a shortage of secondary schools throughout the country, the lack of opportunities for girls to attend secondary school is acute.

In-country NGO partner: Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE Sierra Leone Chapter).

granting scholarships: 50 girls have beenawarded secondary school scholarships to attend the new school above, beginning in September 2007. They will enroll in various grades, and the same Batonga scholarship will be paid annually until each girl graduates from grade 12. The scholarship includes tuition, uniforms, school supplies, mentoring and community awareness programs.

In-country NGO partner: Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE Sierra Leone Chapter).

supporting a vocational school: funds are being provided for a Vocational Training School in Freetown that currently has 48 girls enrolled, all of whom were rescued from brothels. These girls were forced into the sex trade by crushing poverty and a lack of opportunities for women. All under 20 years of age, each of the girls is close to completing a two-year vocational training program in one of four professions: tie dying, tailoring, soap making and photography.

In-country NGO partner: Children Associated with the War (CAW).