Giving for the Girls

A few weeks ago the Peace Corps volunteers hosted a charity dinner in Cotonou to raise money for the Gender and Development programs. This was a similar event to the one in March (see previous post), except instead of only being for Peace Corps volunteers, it was more formal and open to the Beninese and American communities in Cotonou. With the money that was raised from these two events, volunteers are able to implement activities in their communities to promote gender equality and education.

Many of the activities that volunteers choose to pursue focus on girls' educaton. Beninese girls are seriously disadvantaged in terms of education and face many obstacles to stayng in school. Therefore, in conjunction with this event, Peace Corps had an essay contest for 8th grade level girls to win a trip to Cotonou. This was a great opportunity for the girls that won, as most of them had never even left their villages before. From Thursday- Sunday each girl stayed with a prominent Beninese woman (called "Maman Modeles"), went to work with her ("Bring your Daughter to Work Day"), and participated in a seminar about setting goals for themselves and how to achieve their career goals.

There were two girls, named Reine and Chantal, that were choosen from Lalo, so Miranna was able to escort them down to Cotonou. Reine stayed with a Maman that is the owner of a fine dining restuarant (she caters for the President of Benin!) and Chantal was paired with a Maman that is the director of a private school. Other girls were paired with famous journalists, doctors, and businesswomen. The girls were also invited to the dinner and gave a short presentation on what they had learned from their Mamans over the weekend. Our hope is that the girls will take back what they learned to their villages and choose to stay in school to pursue their dreams- no matter how big or small.

All-in- all it was a great weekend for the girls, the volunteers, and auction-attendees alike. I look forward to participating next year and giving other girls from Lalo the chance to as well!

A few pics from the event...


Us posing in front of artwork for the auction. Charlie used the event as an occasion to sport his Beninese flag bumba again!


Three of the girls modeling wooden Beninese masks that were available in the silent auction.


Miranna with Reine and Chantal, the girls from Lalo.

Chantal with her Maman Modele (in red) and her Maman's sister (in blue), who will also be Miranna's new Education Director for Peace Corps Benin.