By Zyck Baggett | Project Manager
Dear Kono Gnaga Friends and Family,
We’re excited to share that the 7th Annual Kono Gnaga Festival in Bamako was a great success! Held at the beginning of the year, it featured the participation of nine partner schools. For three months leading up to the festival, students took part in classes at their schools, culminating in a vibrant community celebration in January. This year also marked the successful expansion of our program to the more rural area of Ségou, where we partnered with the Mieruba Art Center and two local schools. We were proud to employ local artists to work directly with students, and the program concluded with a second community festival in Ségou.
A new and meaningful initiative we introduced this year was allowing students to select a theme for their performances. Through dance and music, they explored powerful topics like girls' education, sanitation challenges, access to clean water, and juvenile delinquency—using cultural heritage as a tool to tell stories and raise awareness. These messages reached hundreds of people in their communities during the festivals, and we were deeply moved by the students' creativity and leadership.
To better understand our impact, we hired a monitoring and evaluation specialist who led focus groups with students, parents, and community members. One of the most encouraging findings was that parents have noticed increased motivation among their children to attend school as a result of our programming. Even more inspiring, our work is clearly helping to build confidence and empower girls. One student shared: “I’ve become a better student. Before, I didn’t ask questions when I didn’t understand. Now, I ask my teacher without feeling ashamed.”
With girls making up 80% of our participants, it’s clear that Kono Gnaga is helping to break down barriers to education for girls. We couldn’t be prouder of the entire Kono Gnaga team!
As always, thank you for your continued and vital support. You are an essential part of the Kono Gnaga family, and we couldn’t do this work without you.
Peace and blessings,
The Kono Gnaga Team
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