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MAKE A LASTING IMPACT WITH THE BANSANG

SWISS PROJECT

Empowering the next generation

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welcome welcome

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WHO WE ARE

Committed to enriching the lives of youths

Early 1970s – every Friday, my grandmother Nancy Roberts - of Dobson Street, Banjul - used to set up a table to feed the surrounding orphans. Helping her set up these tables, week after week, year after year, taught me that communities are shaped around personal contributions.

 

Early 2018 – My husband Nicola Ambrosi de Magistris Verzier and I (Caroline née Briggs) visited Bansang. After seeing the conditions of the schools and the villages – lacking some basic needs – we realised one thing: it is now time for us to set up our table hand in hand with the Bansang community.    

This project started off with headmaster Mr. Ismaila Ceesay. Helping us make this project a reality and a sustainable one was the invaluable and continuous support on the ground given by headmaster Mr. Yahya Faal.

We are fortunate to have the precious help of Dr. Christopher Da Costa, our medical advisor. He is presently guiding our Ophthalmology student in our free outreach programs in the Bansang region and supporting us in our urgent appeal to assist the Bansang Hospital with their urgent need for neo-natal incubators.

OUR MOTIVATION:

We are two individuals who firmly believe that when you've been a bit fortunate in life and have received, it is only right to give back...

Rightly or wrongly, we grew up connecting the idea of "charity" to the "overheads linked to the organisation" where a substantially lower benefit arrives at destination; this is the reason why, at The Bansang Swiss Project (a Registered Association), we run it like a family and all costs are borne by us!

In each village of the Bansang region, the school is the only building, place or centre where the children can gather as a community, while also receiving high level education. There, the Bansang community can shape the next generations into crucial active participants in the development of their village, lives and country.

 

At The Bansang Swiss Project, we are here to give them the support they need. Working hand in hand with community volunteers, discover our mission and see how you too can make a difference and help us all improve the lives of these children, together.​

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WHERE WE ARE

West Africa, The Gambia

Our activity is concentrated in the region of Bansang, a town located Upriver in The Gambia, about 350km from the capital Banjul.
While the coastal region, though far from wealthy, has enjoyed some of the benefits connected to a fairly active touristic activity, the regions located inland have no tourism, limited commercial activity and are predominantly rural, where families live off subsistence agriculture.
The schools in this area are funded for basic needs by the Ministry of Education but are allocated no funds for extraordinary issues, such as material, new classes, sanitation, etc.

WHAT WE DO

The schools in this region are real community projects, where children spend most of their day and are fed through the  UN WFP school-feeding programme supplemented by the produce of each school's orchard. No vegetables harvested – no greens on their plates.

Water supply and access is therefore of paramount importance (watering of orchards; basic sanitation; fresh water; for cooking meals; domestic science and science courses) so helping build wells, digging boreholes, providing water pumps is primordial.

Classroom, classroom furniture, stationery and didactic materials are also other areas of concern.

Our efforts concentrate on providing better structures for the schools in the region of Bansang, both in terms of housing and didactic materials. We aim to collaborate with the local communities in order to allow a larger and easier access to schooling, eventually leading up to local university studies.  Watch a documentary about our activities on Q TV and another on GRTS Education Forum.

We have also just finished sponsoring two undergraduate students (Law and Optometry) who are role models for the local youths and welcome further candidates .

We welcome donors support towards  their further Masters / Postgrad University fees.

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