Help Girls’ Learning in Burkina Faso with Noon Meals

Peace Corps volunteers know that their service never ends after two years, since they have a «third goal» obligation to help other Americans learn about their country of service and understand the culture and underlying problems there. The goal is lifelong.
My country of service was Burkina Faso. Having returned, I keep in touch with what is going on with the country and the on-​going aid projects by being a member of the Friends of Burkina Faso organization (
). Often current Peace Corps volunteers try to raise money stateside to support project proposals. These projects are typically focused on girls’ education, AIDS awareness, and previously Guinea worm eradication.
On the occasion of my 500^th review, I want to draw everyone’s attention to one such important project that is being administered through Global Giving. The link is here:
.
Basically, girls often have to walk long distances in order to be able to attend school. The journey can be as much as 4 miles and is done in oppresive heat. If a girl wants to attend school, they make the journey and forgo any food for the entire day until they arrive home in the evening. This is detrimental on grades and ultimately retention. This current project institutes free lunches for these girls. The data has shown that this helps considerably in retention rates. You may be surprised to learn that in Burkina Faso only 1% of the population attends university, and they are mostly men. So any effort to improve girls’ education is viewed with utmost importance. I encourage fellow readers to learn more about the project and maybe make a donation. A little bit of money goes a long way, e.g., $ 15 will pay for 50 meals! I am going to forgo eating out tonight, and make a donation of the money I would have spent. There is no overhead in a cause like this, so you can be sure that all of your money is supporting girls at the grass roots level. Thank you for reading.