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Education
for All Week
6 - 13 April 2003
All for Girls Education
!
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THE
CHILDREN PRESS CONFERENCE
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 Tuesday
8th April, in the Economic and Social Council auditorium, that children
expressed themselves personally about the question through the evidences
of four young girls. Amy Thiam, Bobo
Fall, Khady Seydi and Fatoumata
Konta accepted to testify the obstacles they went through -parents
deceased, lack of means, forced marriages- under the protection
of their guardian angels, Coumba Gawlo Seck and Suzanne Camara,
and of the Representative of the Minister of Education, Mbaye Ndoumbé
Gueye.
Script
1.
The presenter, Selly Wane from Radio Guneyi, started by presenting
the conference program. She also reminded in a few words the week
program, for it had already been given during the press briefing
session. Finally, she introduced the girls, Khady,
Amy, Bobo and Fatoumata,
and their sponsors, Coumba Gawlo Seck and Suzanne Camara.
 2.
The first sponsor, Coumba Gawlo Seck, explained her sponsorship
and the reason for her presence here that day: she spoke about
her school experience and her difficult past experiences to get
to her current status, that is to say stardom. Saying so, she
showed the girls who came to testify her support in that experience
they share. The first girl is then introduced: Khady Seydi, and
one by one, they will speak about their experience: Amy Thiam,
Bobo Fall and Fatoumata Konta.
3.
The presenter introduced the second model woman.
4.
Suzanne Camara ended up these testimonies highlighting the
interest they represent, which realities they remind. She also
insisted a lot on the many different calls for help, to the authorities,
parents, teachers...
5.
At last, the presenter introduced the Minister of Education representative,
Mr. Gueye.
6.
Mr. Gueye reminded some striking facts about girls' education
in Africa. He also maintained the undertaking entered by the Ministry
in girls and boys parity. He called for the mobilisation of all
for this same cause: girls' education.
7.
Journalists started asking questions to the girls, the models
or the representative of the Ministry of Education.
Description
of four brave girls
Khady lost her father when she was young.
This is why now she lacks of means. She is the only girl in her
family and has to combine school and housework at the same time.
As she cannot study at home, she has to stay at school to do her
homework in the afternoon. Khady is one of the best pupils in her
class, but she does not know if she will be able to carry on if
she doesn't get some money.
Amy is a 13 years old girl who lives with
her elder sister. She lost her father. Now she is a domestic during
the day for 6000 Fr CFA a month. At night, she follows literacy
lessons in a specialised institution. In spite of her work, she
keeps on going there every evening, and she says herself that had
she had the choice, she would have gone to school at the age of
6 . She speaks Wolof. The translator at the conference knows her
and is working with her at the institution.
Bobo is the only girl in her family. Everyday,
she has to get up at 5 o'clock in the morning to do the housework,
before going to school. After the lessons, she has to carry on with
washing, sweeping, cooking... From 1993 to 1997, she had to stop
going to school, for she did not manage to do both housework and
schoolwork. But in 1997, she decided to give it another try when
she realized how school is important. The headmaster of the school
at first did not want to take her back, thinking she was too old,
but with the help of relatives and neighbours, she was admitted.
She asks for a higher flexibility of the legislation concerning
the admission criterions for children who want to go to school.
Fatoumata
is 20 and now lives in France. She was born in Casamance and left
Senegal in her childhood with her parents. When she was in high-school,
she went to Senegal on holiday. Her father met her there and took
her passport from her to make her stay: she was going out with a
French boy at the time, against her father's will. It was four months
before her final examination, baccalaureate. As she could not go
back to France, she couldn't go take her exams. But her teachers
and friends called for medias, and at last the government got involved:
she was finally allowed to take her exams in September and passed
it. Now, she is at the University thanks to a grant, does not see
her family anymore and is the chairwoman of an association (AFEF)
for women's emancipation.
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