Key Successes

  • 100% of middle school students pass the high school entry exam (for reference, in 2023, the national pass rate was 30.3%)

  • 100% of 12th grade high school students graduate each year

  • 100% of the first group of university students passed into their second year (typical passing rate for 1st year students is less than 20%)

meet our First college students

They are the first in the history of their community to attend university. Their own words are perhaps the greatest testament to our impact.

‘For me as a young woman, education is the key to a better life.  I really understand that. When I finish my college studies, I will get to make choices for my future without someone else making them for me.’ - Ba Umu

‘I learned from a young age that my education could help other people.  In the beginning, adults would bring papers from doctors asking me what it said and how to take their medicine.  With the education I am getting, I aspire to do great things for my community, like you and Mali Kalanso have done for me.’ - Issa

‘I lost my father when I was in 16, which made it very difficult for my family.  I asked for permission to marry when I finished high school because it was a way to help my family survive.  Despite my duties as a wife and mother, I continue to study hard in college because I want to make a better life for my family.’ -Kadi

‘ It takes a village to educate a child.  When I first learned this proverb, I immediately understood:  your family and community teach you the values of right and wrong, and when an adult is educated, they also share their knowledge to anyone, at any time, anywhere they go. I want to help not just my own community but to work to help children all over my country to have a better life.’ -Hamady

‘When I first started school, I didn’t understand the importance of education but I liked learning. High school was very difficult for me because most of my friends decided to leave school to work and earn money to help their families.  My teachers and parents gave me alot of advice and encouraged me to continue with school.  I now see that for girls like me, education is the key to liberty.’ -Halimata

‘You got me help when I was very sick with a disease that was causing me to lose my eyesight.  From that moment, I knew I wanted to be someone who would help others overcome their illnesses.’ -Tiemoko

 
 

‘I was studying at the [State sponsored] literacy center before Mali Kalanso built the school.  When it opened, the new school director encouraged me to continue my studies. I tested into the 5th grade.  I have an older brother who’s gone to professional school for accounting but I am the first to go to university.  It will change my life, the life of my family and the life of everyone I encounter. This is all thanks to you.’ -Bina

‘Before, we were living in the dark.

You brought us from the darkness, into the light.’

- Arouna (and others)