Peanuts are one of the most important agricultural crops in Senegal. They serve both as food and as the main source of income for many small farmers.
WEST AFRICA
A SCHOOL AND SPORTS COMPLEX FOR KAOLACK
🇸🇳 ELHADJ DIOUF ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND KINDERGARTEN
Kaolack, Senegal | Inauguration in May 2024
The new social private school “Elhadj Diouf” offers both boys and girls a basic general education at a high level. A free, daily hot meal and emergency medical care are naturally part of the offer. WEF West Africa is the financier and sponsor of an entire floor. The entire school complex was enthusiastically explored by local children as soon as it was inaugurated in May.
The official start of lessons took place in November 2024.
The Harz-Kurier, the local newspaper of EDF Osterode's home town, devoted an entire page to the opening of the school and sports complex.
The EDF is committed to ensuring that …
1. German and Senegalese young people are brought together as the foundation of a cultural bridge, for example by facilitating workshop-based exchanges;
2. targeted support is provided on the ground in the areas of education, healthcare, nutrition, sport, music, etc.,
so that…
- girls and boys can attend school (school fees, transport);
- learning conditions are improved (school materials, classrooms, tutoring, etc.);
- medical care in Kaolack is ensured;
- children receive a balanced diet;
- young people are offered prospects to reduce the causes of migration;
- junior ambassadors are trained to raise awareness among their peers about ONE World.
The Werner Erkes Foundation is currently establishing the Werner Erkes Foundation West Africa (WEF Africa West) in Senegal, which will implement educational projects there and in neighbouring countries.
As a cooperation partner specialising in financing, WES has facilitated the construction of the WEF sports and play complex as well as a large part of the school building
The executive boards of EDF and WES at the launch of the partnership in the summer of 2023
As the largest EDF supporter of the entire education, sport and leisure complex, we were inducted into the Golden Supporters’ Club.
After Laamb (wrestling), football is the most popular sport in Senegal. It is played throughout the country, mainly by young people.
WEST AFRICA
🇸🇳 WERNER ERKES SPORTS COMPLEX
AND PLAYGROUND
Kaolack, Senegal | Inaugurated in May 2024
The sports and play area is directly adjacent to the school grounds. The facility includes a multifunctional sports field with high-quality flooring for tennis, football, basketball, etc., a building with changing rooms and toilets, and two playgrounds. We financed the entire sports and play area, which was built together with the EDF Foundation and the Association AKS (Kaolack).
The sports facility will also be accessible to sports clubs in Kaolack and the wider area. The income generated will benefit the school project. Completion and opening was in May 2024.
WES is very happy to have been able to get involved in this exciting flagship project in Senegal.
Salt production on the Saloum – tradition and a livelihood in Senegal
Salt has been harvested for centuries in the Saloum Delta in western Senegal. The salty water from the river and lagoons evaporates in the hot sun, causing the salt to crystallise. There are large salt pans, particularly around the town of Kaolack, where the salt is traditionally harvested by hand.
Salt production is an important source of income for many people in the region. Families often work together in the salt fields and then transport the salt to local markets for sale. Alongside traditional methods, there are now also larger companies such as the Société Nouvelle des Salins du Sine Saloum, which processes sea salt industrially.
The Saloum Delta is also an important nature reserve featuring mangrove forests and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Salt production there continues to this day to illustrate the close connection between people, climate and landscape.
🇸🇳 WEF École de l'Avenir
Kaolack, Senegal | Construction to begin in summer 2026
The WEF École de l’Avenir school is scheduled to open its doors in Kaolack in autumn 2027. It is set to become a place of learning, interaction and inclusion.
The school complex comprises three nursery classes, six primary classes, four lower secondary classes and six upper secondary classes. The school provides a space for education, exchange and personal development. The name WEF École de l’Avenir stands for collaborative learning and mutual support.
Components of the project:
- An administration building with offices for the school management and administration to ensure smooth operations and transparent communication.
- Spaces for teaching staff and school services that bring together professionalism and support.
- A school canteen, a conference or multi-purpose room, a library and a computer room – places of knowledge, encounter and digital skills.
- A science classroom and a laboratory that spark curiosity and foster a spirit of inquiry.
- Modern sanitary facilities and electrical systems, including a solar power system, ensuring sustainability, reliability and environmental awareness.
- Water supply systems and facilities for the disposal of waste water and rainwater, ensuring hygiene and health.
- A multifunctional sports field with changing rooms, promoting physical activity, team spirit and fair play.
- A building for activities in poultry and fish farming, combining practical education with ecological perspectives.
- A perimeter wall to secure the site, conveying a sense of safety and security.
- Indoor and outdoor facilities, including an educational garden that harmoniously combines learning and experiential spaces.
A central concern here is the school’s inclusive approach: children with disabilities are welcomed. The learning and living environment is designed to be accessible and diverse, so that every pupil, regardless of ability, can participate in lessons, the community and extracurricular activities.
This building represents more than just architecture: it is a firm commitment to investment in education, equal opportunities and a fairer future. WEF École de l’Avenir – a place where knowledge grows, talents flourish and a bridge is built to a better world.
Lake Volta is an artificial reservoir in central Ghana and one of the largest of its kind in the world. The lake supplies water to the Volta River Authority hydroelectric power station, which for a long time generated most of Ghana's electricity.
WEST AFRICA
🇬🇭 CONSTRUCTION OF AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL WITH KINDERGARTEN
Hobor, Ghana
The project is located in the Hobor area of Ghana, approximately two hours northwest of the capital Accra. Children in this area live scattered across small settlements and previously had no school to attend. The nearest school is either too far away or the families cannot afford the school fees. As a result, child labour is often the norm instead of school education.
The first part of the school complex, with three classrooms, sanitary facilities and access to clean water, was completed in October 2023! The first lessons took place in two classes, each with 30 children.
Since April 2025, the primary school with kindergarten has been fully operational after the completion of the upper floor, which now has a total of four classrooms, an office, a kitchen and sanitary facilities.
To meet the expected demand for a secondary school, a larger second school complex is already being planned on a neighbouring plot of land.
This is the result of a very good and trusting cooperation between ‘Together for Ghana’, ‘Kinder Zentrum International’ and WEF West Africa.
Hannah Janßen (Zusammen für Ghana, Hannover) and Antonio Freeman (Kinder Zentrum International, Ghana) are the chairmen of our partner organizations.
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