By Fatoumata Kone, Operations Coordinator

Djeneba Traore is a Mali Rising Foundation alumnae and a very brave girl who has loved school since she was a little girl. Despite obstacles, Djeneba got her education and is now ready to get to work teaching the next generation.

Djeneba graduated from Mali Rising’s Leon W. Pete Harman Middle School. She then went on to high school, which is a fairly rare occurrence in Mali where only 5% of girls complete high school. At high school, she encountered difficulties such as harassment. This made her very scared to attend classes, but she was brave enough to ask a teacher for help which stopped the harassment. Despite all this, she was determined to finish high school and go on to university.

After high school, Djeneba was determined to continue her education. “So I enrolled at Kabala University in Bamako, where I studied education. The university was far from where I lived, but I was motivated to continue my studies and get my degree,” Djeneba explained. “I spent 4 years studying in Kabala. Education is very important, especially the education of girls. If a girl is educated, it's like a whole nation that is educated.”

“At the moment I've finished my studies thanks to my perseverance and determination to achieve my goals,” Djeneba said “As it's difficult to find a job, I did several work placements in different fields, such as the my old [Mali Rising] school, which enabled me to deepen my knowledge. And I took several competitive exams but they didn't work out, but I still have the faith to keep going until I realize my dream. In the future, if I find a job, I'd like to help young girls who haven't had the chance to go to school and orphans.”

We celebrate Djeneba’s perseverance and her dedication to education. We hope to see her leading a classroom of young students soon….passing on the power of education!