Children’s Village, Kindergarten and Medical Clinic in Tambacounda, Senegal

The operation in Tambacounda was the first major project that the Foundation started in 2009. The original children’s village has been extended by a kindergarten and a medical clinic.

In 2009, in cooperation with SOS Children’s Villages, the Foundation fully paid for its own children’s village in Tambacounda with room for 150 children. Tambacounda is located in the middle of Senegal, a region that suffers from widespread poverty. Th possibility of growing up in a children’s village may make all the difference for children who may have lost both their parents, may have been threatened by child labor instead of going to school, or may be living in poverty.

The Children’s Village

Housed in ten houses, the children that either don’t have a family or whose parents are unable to care for them are part of a new “family”. Every house has its own “house mother” and there are also “aunties” who carry an important function in seeing and supporting the children, helping them to become the best they can.

In addition to regular household activities, there are also other resources, such as cultivation lots and a data room that gives the children access to modern technology (an important knowledge). The children get to take part in dance, games and sports. Study visits are made to towns and villages in the area, and there are many other activities aiming to enhance the children’s development and strengthen their self-confidence.

The children are 2 to 19 years old, and those who have stayed there since the village was built are grown up and ready to be channeled back into society.

In addition to the costs of building the actual houses, the Foundation also pays all salaries, maintenance and operating costs for the village.

Kindergarten

The Foundation has paid for a kindergarten for 200 children that is in direct connection with the Childrens’ Village. Here the children meet other children that live with their parents in Tambacounda and surrounding villages, which will be an important asset for them later in life when they transition from the protected children’s village to be inserted into the regular society.

Children that do not live in the village pay for their spot in the school, but the Foundation pays for most of the salaries, operating costs, and equipment such as computers. A well-attended basket court has been built among the houses, also a venue for those who live in or outside of the village. The recently renovated well provides water to the lots that the children help to cultivate.

Medical clinic

In addition to the investment in the children, the Foundation has also built a medical clinic with the capacity to treat over 20 000 patients per year. The clinic offers general care with special focus on mothers and children, such as maternity care, preventive care, including vaccinations, prevention of malnutrition and childbirth assistance.

There is also a well utilized ambulance attached to the clinic, a service that benefits everyone in the immediate area.

The Foundation paid for the building of the clinic and is also paying for the main part of the operational costs including salaries for all employees.

The establishment of SOS Children’s Villages in Tambacounda has had an impact of increased service level and greater attractiveness for the area, which in turn has led to government investments in the infrastructure with better roads and better access to electricity and running water. The investments made by the Foundation have therefore had a positive impact on the whole community.

Scholarship trip to Tambacounda