Students in Freetown are looking forward to starting school this year because you helped cover their school fees making school possible for 86 students. Of those 86 students 46 were primary school students (nursery school through class 6) and 40 of those students were in secondary school (Junior Secondary school through Senior Secondary School 3).

These 86 students also each received a book bag containing notebooks,  erasers, pens & pencils, crayons, a ruler, an umbrella, and a pencil sharpener. 

Nearly 1 in 4 girls of primary school age are out of school in sub-Saharan Africa.  There are currently 5.5 million more out-of-school girls of primary school age than boys, worldwide.

The barriers that deter children from attending primary school vary across and within countries but are often associated with poverty, geographic remoteness, armed conflict, lack of school infrastructure, and poor-quality education. Moreover, these obstacles often interact with gender inequality to intensify learning disadvantages for marginalized girls.

One of the future leaders that your generous donations have helped support is Franklyn. Franklyn has been a part of the Develop Africa sponsorship program since he was 9 years old in class 5.  His father has not been a part of his life since he was very young, and his mom struggled to send him and two older brothers and one younger brother to school. 

One of the young ladies that your generous donations have helped support is Geraldine. She tells us in her words how she is doing now- 

I am a final year student at the Institute of Public Administration and Management (IPAM) studying Banking and Finance. In June 2021, I wrote my final exams in college. I will be graduating in October 2021. I have learned many things about academics and social life and experienced some of the challenges of adulthood. I am prepared and eager to explore the opportunities that the universe presents. 

Thanks to generous donors, more youths and young adults in Sierra Leone are getting the computer training they need for success in today's technology-driven environment.

There are currently 49 students attending computer training at the Develop Africa Sierra Leone (DASL) Computer lab.  The current computer classes at DASL Computer Lab have three classes. One class is covering Microsoft Excel, one class is covering Microsoft PowerPoint and one class is learning Microsoft Access. 

Children find it difficult to learn in crowded classrooms. Unfortunately, this is what many kids have to endure at the school in Kamawornie, Sierra Leone.

A dismal environment results in less than poor learning. The kids are seated very close to each other - 3 or 4 of them on some benches/desks. In this environment, learning is far from ideal.

Future leader, Dorcas, recently started college, and thanks in part to your support she received a personal laptop for school work.   Dorcas is studying to become an accountant.

She expressed her appreciation in this video saying

Hi, my name is Dorcas. I'm a beneficiary of Develop Africa. I received this laptop today and I'm so excited to use it to do research and my assignments. I really do appreciate it. Thank you!

Your support helped purchase solar lights for multiple students who have no electricity and struggled to study at night.  Two of the students were Mariama and Musa.  Mariama expressed her appreciation in this video saying

Hello, my name is Mariama. I want to say thank you for this light; it's really helping me with my studies.

Your support helped provide children in Kamawornie with new shoes, bringing smiles to the students. You can watch some of them receiving their new shoes in this video https://youtu.be/U9IW_riKCds  

Many families in Kamawornie, a remote village in northern Sierra Leone, live in extreme poverty. The new shoes were greatly appreciated by both the students and their parents.   Thank you for your generosity!