In Guťdawaye, one of the many suburbs of Dakar, the capital of Senegal, more than 5.000 children do not receive any kind of education nor medical assistance, nor food or family support. A great number of them live in the streets.

Often their own families live in a difficult economical situation and cannot afford to provide for their basic needs. Moreover, the Government does not take any action to solve these problems and often people living in Senegal who have come from western countries follow a pattern already experienced in other places: a small amount of money available only for a minority of people that gets lost in projects that are never carried out.

The International Monetary Fund has imposed to the majority of African Governments to take resolutions which are driving their countries to a state of economic depression and food shortage for a large number of the local population. In addition to that it must be said that these resolutions drastically exclude common people from the Fundamental Rights of Man Chart even from those areas concerning health, education, housing and food.

This choice has not been made by the African people, but has been imposed to them by colonialism, the slave trade first, and now by the rich Northern countries’ imperialism.

A real help, an effective solidarity means allowing African people to get back their trust and faith in themselves, to stand up again and to promote development plans which are really worthwhile for themselves and not for the International capital or for a few local people’s interests.

The Association Dialogue- Humanist Centre of Cultures that depends on the Humanist Movement, has started in Italy and in Senegal a campaign of co-operation to support the Senegalese children who have not even the minimum to survive. We are not talking of a further humanitarian help, but of self-organisation of people based on the principles of reciprocity: the one who receives help, helps others in turn.

Goal of the Campaign

The campaign is aimed to find a solution for this difficult problem. Many people volunteer to create a network of activities well organised through co-operation and mutuality. The campaign aims to give answers to the needs of thousands of children living in Dakar’s neighbourhoods (estates). In this moment, the priorities are their primary education (at least reading and writing), sanitary treatment, to allow them to follow their classes and to provide them with clothes and nourishment, so that they can receive a basic and necessary training as human beings.

When we talk of children in need we refer to two different types:

those who are living in the street and those who are living in their houses but without attention from their families, because their parents, are forced to beg all day in order survive, so they end up abandoning their children. Thus, the children that can go to school risk leaving it in their immediate future because they have no support and no one to look after them.

Program

The organisation takes care of children from 7 to 14 years old, 200 children at the beginning. All of them living in neighbourhoods (estates) where there are self-organised Senegalese groups of the Humanist Movement (400 persons in all since August 1997). In the future it will reach wherever possible.

The campaign is proposed to the families of the children so that they can participate in some activity such as self-organisation parties; campaign diffusion; organising themselves in turns to take care of the children etc. In this way the parents have an active role until they organise other campaigns connected to this one.

A pedagogical team, formed by teachers, doctors, assistants, co-ordinates the tasks.

Senegal: organisation of the groups of children, defining the place of where it will take place(the elementary school in state of the closing time).

Organisation and preparation of the groups of teachers.

Italy: development of the initiative, collection of the teaching material (notebooks, pens, pencils, erasers, chalks, books in French and other); medicines for prevention of common illnesses; clothes (shoes, dresses, etc..); material for developing the whole activity (computers, printers, video recorders, televisions, fax).

Development of the school lessons for being near the children across the growth education path.January

First evaluation of the campaign trends.

• Giving any material that can be useful for the Campaign realisation (see enclosed schedule), in any way and quantity

• Participating in helping to collect the needed materials

• Diffusing the campaign to every person who can be interested in it

• Simply filling in the enclosed schedule