ANBI Information

A non-profit organization that provides assistance to 50 families of Dijiyabougou Village in Mbour, Senegal. The foundation aims to elevate the living standards and quality of life of (some) Senegalese children, one village at a time. Our first undertaking will be to repair and upgrade housing for the fifty families (approximately 500 persons including children), to access physical, mental and social services for the families, to provide computers and educational materials for the children, and to address acute local environmental concerns of the village. This first village will serve as the model by which we will extend our outreach to other villages. The long term goal of Bambara Village Children Foundation is to invest in training and entrepreneurship for the women who live in these villages with their children and put them on a sustainable path to self-sufficiency.

There are 500 residents in total. They have no income. The median age is 38 years.

The Founder, Barbara Wray is a retired business owner. She owned a retail store for 7 years and later a textile-related manufacturing operation. She plans to use her business acumen in managing the non-profit foundation. Barbara Wray is supported by a team which includes Henk Jan Buchel and Mara Lamè who are also business owners. Specifically, the team has solid experience in organizing events, marketing to the local community and achieving key goals.

There is a real need to serve this village which has a growing population of young children. These children need education so that this generation will be at a level to succeed in the society. The support they will have from the foundation will lift them out of poverty and put them on a sustainable path to self-sufficiency. The team of the organization fully supports and believes in our mission.

Bambara Village Children Foundation is projecting to raise funds through fundraising events and donations. Barbara Wray will continue to donate personal funds to buy rice and millet to be distributed to the families until enough funds are raised through its fundraisers and grants. With the funds raised Bambara Village Children Foundation projects to achieve the following:

Construct 40 kitchens and 30 toilets

Cost per kitchen & per toilet is estimated at 350€         Approximately 30,000€

Repairs of the roofs  & fences                                        Approximately 20,000€

School equipment and books                                         Approximately   5,000€

With a total of 55,000€ Bambara Village Children Foundation will refurbish the village. This work is projected to begin immediately after we are able to raise the funds with a projected date of the last quarter of 2019.

Bambara Village Children Foundation located at P C Hooftstraat 74-1 Amsterdam will provide assistance to the community of families who live in the village called Djiyabougou in Mbour, Senegal. Currently, this village receives no subsidies from the government. Bambara Village Children Foundation will focus on upgrading the infrastructure of the village, seek healthcare for the villagers, update the school and find donations of computers and IT teachers, etc. Providing healthcare will be sought simultaneously because there is an acute need to get healthcare to the village. Efforts are being made to involve the medical community of Senegal. Contact has been made with the physician who is the president of the private doctors in Senegal. The long-term mission is to first upgrade the living standards and then train the women and help them to establish small businesses so that they could be self-sufficient and able to prepare their children to achieve success in the society at large.

Bambara Village Children Foundation was founded by Barbara Wray in 2018 after a visit to the village where she found that these families were in dire need of basics such as food and clothing. Initially, she thought she would give a personal donation on a monthly basis. After assessing the situation it quickly became clear that these families needed so much more. This propelled her to consider what could be done to benefit the families for the long-term.  

General management of the organization will be handled by Barbara Wray, the Founder and President of Bambara Village Children Foundation. She lives in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Mara Lamè, the Secretary of Bambara Village Children Foundation meets with key constituents including local government officials to determine what is expected of the Foundation and how it will function in Senegal. Mara Lamè is in regular contact with the chief of the village, Moussa Diop with whom he discusses the needs of the village. Mr. Lamè will negotiate with contractors in Senegal when Bambara Village Children Foundation has an established date to begin construction on the premises.

Henk Jan Buchel is the Treasurer and will manage the funds. He will solicit the services of a bookkeeper and handle all matters that need to be done in Dutch. Henk Jan Buchel is also the Webmaster and handles all issues concerning the website. He is the owner and operator of The Amsterdam Boat Centre in Amsterdam.

Bambara Village Children Foundation revenues will come from the solicitation of donations from both individuals and corporations.

The Foundation is currently seeking donations totalling $100,000 in order to start renovation and repair of the village infra-structure. Additionally, funds will be used to seek healthcare and social services for the families.

All funds raised will be used for the benefit of the people of the village. Some funds will be used for travel expenses to and from Senegal to oversee the operation. 10% of funds raised will be earmarked for travel, however, none of the three officers of the Foundation will receive renumeration.

Bambara Village Children Foundation will fundraise during the first three quarters of 2019 and projects to begin repairs and construction of the site in the last quarter 2019. This first year all attention will be on this first village in Dijiyabougou which will serve as the model. The first fundraiser is scheduled for second quarter.

In 2020 the focus will be to train the women and determine the best entrepreneurship avenues to be taken. Barbara Wray will travel to Senegal in the third quarter 2019 to begin interviewing the women to understand their individual skills.  After training these women will be given small loans to start the business. They will be guided and expected to pay those loans back.

Year Dollars Raised

FY 1 $100,000

FY 2 $150,000

FY 3 $200,000

FY 4 $250,000

FY 5 $300,000

Corporate Donations  

Year Dollars Raised

FY 1 $100,000

FY 2 $150,000

FY 3 $200,000

FY 4 $250,000

FY 5 $300,000

With these funds raised Bambara Village Children Foundation will be in a position to move forward with its plan.