Current Fundraising Initiatives
Let them learn on a stomach full: Building School Meal Programs with Women's Co-Op in Senegal
This summer, the women’s smallholder farmer cooperative in Ndangane, Senegal, has
the opportunity to attend their first agricultural fair on June 2nd, 2025, since their local food factory launched in December 2024.
We’re raising funds to cover admission and accommodation so the women can participate, represent their community, and showcase what they’ve
built.
This work is part of the PATH, Promoting Agricultural Transformation Holistically,
project, which has collaborated with Senegalese farmers since 2018. PATH has co-developed
culturally relevant, value-added foods like Bonbon Bouye (a baobab-based nutrition
bar) and fortified yogurts made with local milk and grains. These foods are designed
to support nutrition, strengthen the local infrastructure and economy, and empower
women farmers as innovators and entrepreneurs.
Attending the fair will allow the co-op to debut their products, including peanut
paste and Bonbon Bouye. Importantly, participation in this event will help the PATH team build traction with funders to
scale the farm-to-school model across the region.
Right now, many children in the village do not eat until 11 a.m. or later, arriving at school
without breakfast due to food insecurity. One in every three children in West Africa have stunted growth due to malnutrition.
The vision is to create a self-sustaining school feeding program that provides nutritious, locally produced breakfasts while supporting women-led businesses and local food systems.
Additionally, this event serves as a critical stepping stone for the women’s cooperative to participate
in the Africa Food Systems Forum 2025 in Senegal—the continent’s premier platform for advancing food sovereignty, innovation, and
inclusive agricultural development. With your support, these women will receive a
national platform where their voices will be heard.
"You can definitely tell which ones are malnourished. Somtimes during the extracurricular sessions, some kids are so hungry they just sit by the playground...they don't have the energy to play"
Ngandane Village School Principal
Your donation will directly support travel and lodging for these women in addition
to cost of setting up a booth at the agricultural fair, helping them take a bold step forward for their families, their community, and the
future of nutrition in rural Senegal.
Items your donation will cover:
- Booth fee at fair
- Business cards, flyers, banners & stickers
- Accommodations for 2 women farmers to attend event
- Product packaging for samples
- Transportation
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Support our team to attend the AFSF and present the farm to school project to recruit partners and sponsors
You can help our partnering women's co-op build school meal programs, letting children learn with a nourished body & sharp mind:
Co-developed Value-Added Indigenous Food Products with Senegalese Smallholder Women Farmers in Ngandane, Senegal
Montana State University's Food Product Development Lab's collaboration with the women farmer’s co-op since 2018 has created Bonbon Bouye, a nutritious breakfast bar made of local Indigenous crops.
