During the Covid pandemic, the people of Dauchingen gave several donations to communities in the Gambia.
Three articles were written during that time, displaying more details about the events. Please feel free to read them, so I don’t need to rewrite them here. 🙂
In TRUMPET (Gambian Newspaper)…
… in the “Mitteilungsblatt Dauchingen” (translation below)…
The Dauchingen Project for Children in Gambia, organized by Elfrun and Günther Reinelt, completed a second aid action in October 2020. The project originated in 2005 in collaboration with the elementary school in Dauchingen, and several schools in the area surrounding the village of Bintang were renovated as part of the project, with a new school even built in Bulanjor. Several children were able to attend a secondary school, and some of them now even have a university degree, with our latest supported students now attending university.
Like other African states, Gambia is also heavily impacted by COVID-19. Our trusted agent, Ebrima Drammeh, who was in Dauchingen for a few weeks a few years ago, writes: “All Gambians know that COVID-19 is rampant and deadly in Gambia. The government seems to be unable to do anything in the provinces and in most urban areas at the moment. The number of undiagnosed patients admitted to clinics and hospitals, and the sudden (unexplained) deaths in our communities are, according to most doctors, signs that COVID-19 is still there and partially deadly. It is unfortunate that people in Gambia cannot be kept at home like in Europe or America. There is a general saying here that “it is preferable to die on the street from diseases or bullets than to die from hunger in one’s own house.”
In May, we had Mr. Drammeh purchase and distribute rice worth 1800.00 € for the starving population. Now in October, we donated the same amount again, allowing for a total of 7,500 kg of rice to be purchased for children and the poorest families. With 150 g of rice per portion, 50,000 meals were donated. The gratitude letters from the mayor of Bintang and the small surrounding communities such as Buram, Kassang, Katakorr, and Jakoj demonstrate that the rice deliveries were desperately needed to give people some hope and relieve hunger.
From March to mid-October, schools and universities were closed. Homeschooling was not feasible for obvious reasons. In October, the schools re-opened, but since children are not allowed to attend school without school uniforms, we decided to donate money for the uniforms. Local tailors received the orders to make the clothing. Since washing hands in school is a problem, we also purchased water containers for the schools. We spent 2,200.00 € for school uniforms, water tanks, and transportation costs. Ebrima Drammeh executed everything perfectly on our behalf.
We are particularly happy about the school uniform donations because education is the key to a better future for these children, and we hope to support them in their education as much as possible. We would like to express our sincere thanks to everyone who supported us in this project, especially our friends and acquaintances who donated money or made other contributions.