FAWE was formed for the education of girls by women ministers to address the lack of educational opportunities for girls.There are 36 chapters of FAWE throughout Africa and 14 of them are for the French speaking countries such as Senegal. Their main objective is gender equity by providing and promoting access to education, training, and keeping girls in school. They push for parental and community involvement. Because most teachers in Senegal are men, they have provided teacher training to integrate the classroom and since 2005 more than 20,000 teachers have been trained on gender issues which include some basic concepts around restroom usage and more complex issues such as violence against girls.
Ms. Anta Basse Konte, President of FAWE in the center in blue with our TGC cohort and consultants
There are many programs and opportunities within FAWE. Right now there is a push for girls to take STEM classes. They offer scholarships for girls who may not be able to afford continuing education. They also have a national competition for the most significant change story. They hold career days where women who have been successful in their continuing education return to be role models and provide motivation for the girls. There is also an excellence program where each year there is an exam given for each department. They look for the 10 best students and put them in a special program and track their success. There is now even a National Day of Girls' Education on November 11th which was decreed by the president.
Ms. Anta Basse Konte, President of FAWE
From what I have seen and information I have gathered, there are as many girls as there are boys in classes and the teachers claim that the girls are now performing better than the boys. They are embracing their opportunities and working hard. However, for higher education, there are still far fewer young women than young men because they often have to care for the home or they marry at a young age. This is one of the areas that FAWE will continue to work on in the future. Another area is cooking classes for boys! The men do not cook at all so there is a push for them to learn and share the responsibilities in the home so boys and girls can have equal access to the opportunities for higher education.
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