Stories

Skills That Empower: Personal Growth and Local Impact in Mali

Every year on July 15, World Youth Skills Day celebrates the role that technical, digital, entrepreneurial, and social skills play in empowering young people and helping them thrive in their communities. These same values are at the heart of the SCOFI project in Mali.

In schools and villages across the Ségou region, girls and boys are learning practical skills, building confidence, and becoming changemakers in their communities. The stories below highlight how young people and women in Konobougou and Yangasso are using education, entrepreneurship, and civic engagement to transform their daily lives.

Konobougou: A School Garden That’s Growing More Than Vegetables

At Konobougou B School, one of 90 schools supported by the SCOFI project, 292 students (142 girls and 150 boys) in grades 7 to 9 are not just studying, they’re also learning how to run a business.

With support from their school and SCOFI, members of the Nyeleni Youth Club launched income-generating activities (IGAs) that involve the entire student body. Led by 9th grader Sadio Kelly, the student-run initiative has turned a simple school garden into a thriving operation.

Students grow organic okra, cucumbers, melons, and chili peppers, which they sell in their community. Monthly profits of 112,000 FCFA have helped the school purchase hygiene products, menstrual health supplies, and materials for club activities and school events.

To market their produce, students surveyed local vendors and promote their harvests, especially their organic okra, through phone calls and WhatsApp voice messages. Training from SCOFI has improved their gardening techniques and helped them promote gender equality and social inclusion at school and at home.

Students say the project has led to fewer early marriages, reduced rural migration, and more equal sharing of tasks between boys and girls. They’ve also created skits to raise awareness about girls’ education, early marriage, and academic integrity.

Some students have even launched their own side projects, like planting fruit trees or making compost, generating small incomes for themselves. The club is run democratically with simple financial and administrative tools introduced by SCOFI. It’s a sign of real change: young people are stepping up as responsible, engaged community leaders.

Nana, 13 years old

“I’m in 9th grade and I’m the club’s secretary for girls’ education. Thanks to SCOFI’s awareness sessions, I’ve learned to apply gender equality principles at school, in my family, and in my neighborhood.”

Inspired by the garden’s success, Nana started growing fruit trees and maize at home. She used the profits to buy herself jewelry for Christmas and shared her experience to encourage her classmates to do the same.

Dramane, 15 years old

“I’m in 9th grade, the club’s secretary general, and I’m preparing for my final exam next year. SCOFI trained us in leadership, self-confidence, gardening techniques, and menstrual health.”

Dramane planted mango trees and raises chickens and pigeons with advice from his family. He earned enough to buy new clothes and glasses for the Eid celebration and still has 8,000 FCFA saved. He also uses his brother’s smartphone to research his school lessons and says SCOFI helped him discover his entrepreneurial side.

Yangasso: Empowerment Through Soap-Making

In the town of Yangasso, the women’s group Benkadi has turned traditional soap-making into a business. Reorganized in 2021 as part of SCOFI’s social behavior change efforts, the group promotes girls’ education and women’s economic independence.

The group includes 87 members, including 20 young women and one young man. With SCOFI’s support, they’ve transformed their informal activity into a structured enterprise.

They received training in improved soap-making techniques, business and financial management, leadership, public speaking, and advocacy. A 5 million FCFA start-up fund helped them build a storage facility and purchase the equipment and ingredients they needed to scale up production.

Four teams take turns producing soap twice a month. The improved, scented soap is sold for 3,600 FCFA per box of 16 bars, generating around 30,000 FCFA in monthly revenue. Profits are shared as follows:

• 20% to purchase hygiene products for the local school
• 40% reinvested as working capital
• 40% shared among members to support their daughters’ education and personal needs

Led mostly by young women, the group is known for its strong leadership, teamwork, and commitment to transparency. The income they generate not only improves lives but also strengthens their confidence and social recognition. They now have a stronger voice in household and community decisions.

About the SCOFI Project

The Girls’ Education Support Project in Mali (SCOFI) is funded by Global Affairs Canada and aims to improve educational outcomes for adolescent girls aged 13 to 15 in the Ségou region. The project addresses barriers – social, economic, cultural, and physical, including those faced by girls with disabilities – to ensure that every girl can access quality education in a safe and inclusive environment.

SCOFI also supports teachers and education officials at national and local levels to make the education system more inclusive and gender responsive.