Batonga Foundation

Results: Since our founding in 2006: ● Over 5,000 academic years of education provided to girls in 5 African countries, through holistic support, scholarships and in-kind support to their families ● 8,727 students have access to wells and latrines across 7 schools in Benin ● Over 222,000 students in Benin’s poorest regions received TOMS shoes for the walk to school Since launching our data-driven approach in 2016: ● 1,629 girls recruited into our 60 Girls Clubs ○ 98% attendance rate achieved ○ 100% of girls in clubs engaged in business skills development and income-generating activity ● 21 villages mapped using the Girl RosterTM digital survey tool to gather data on excluded/vulnerable girls ○ 92% female field staff ● Engaged and received enthusiastic support from 100% of community leaders ● 20 NGOs from 8 West African countries and 3 government agencies actively engaged through our learning circle, Réseau d'Apprentissage des Filles Adolescentes Bénin ● 1,768 individuals trained ○ 97% female ○ 95% rural

Target demographics: Batonga equips young women and girls in Benin with knowledge and skills they need to be agents of change in their communities and in their own lives.

Direct beneficiaries per year: Over 100,000 young women, girls, their families and their communities.

Geographic areas served: Benin

Programs: In 2017, the batonga foundation worked to identify the most vulnerable girls in benin and build their social, emotional and cognitive assets through a combination of life-skills, technical skills, mentorship and personalized support delivered through girls clubs. Batonga also convened and cultivated a learning network to facilitate coordination, information sharing, and advocacy for data-driven solutions that lead to more effective and impactful programs for off-track adolescent girls. As a result of the foundation's work, batonga won first place in the 2017 pan-african awards for entrepreneurship in education. The pan-african awards recognize the most innovative organizations using enterprise and entrepreneurship to expand the field of education. In 2017, the three primary activities for batonga included:1. Increasing educational and economic opportunity and social, emotional and mental well-being of vulnerable adolescent girls in underserved regions of benin through girls clubs. In 2017, batonga continued to reach vulnerable adolescent girls in underserved regions of benin through the operation of girls clubs. Batonga's girls clubs:- provided mentoring and training for some of the most vulnerable adolescent girls to build their social networks, communication skills, self-esteem, and goal-setting abilities. - served as safe spaces where participants developed life skills, learned financial literacy and technical skills, and received mentorship and career guidance. - provided opportunities for engagement in income generating activities, thus expanding participants' future options as well as their social capital. In 2017, batonga also introduced solar technology into girls clubs as a potential tool for income generation. The goal of incorporating this technology was to simultaneously increase the income-generating power of girls and young women while ensuring resource-poor communities access to renewable energy. To pilot this initiative, batonga held a training workshop in sierra leone with club mentors and supervisors, followed by peer-to-peer trainings in bohicon and savalou. Solar technologies were provided to 9 girls clubs and each clubs developed their own business model for solar-powered cell phone charging stations, using the technologies. 2. Convening an adolescent girls' learning circle:in 2017, batonga continued to convene and cultivate a regional thought leadership network called, rseau batonga d'apprentissage des filles adolescentes bnin, to document and share learnings and best practices. The network regularly shared maps, plans, budgets, and data to enhance understanding of local communities and to coordinate efforts in the field. The learning circle met on a bi-monthly basis and brought together a diverse group of organizations committed to targeted, evidence-based and scalable programs. Through this network, batonga:- contributed to the evidence base that drives ngo programming for youth and highlighted granular data on adolescent girls, better equipping local ngos to deliver girl-focused programming. - promoted evidence-based, data-driven approaches to programs focused on girls' education, civic participation, and health among ngos operating in benin and enhanced implementing agencies and local organizations' understanding of target populations in order to advance adolescent girls' rights over the long term. 3. Strategic development and evaluationin 2017, batonga worked with external consultants to develop a strategic plan for growth and to evaluate the current status of its programs through a process evaluation. This allowed batonga to assess what had worked well, what was surprising, and where new thinking and approaches are needed moving forward. As a result of the strategic development and process evaluation, batonga was able to pinpoint key areas for growth and develop clear goals and benchmarks for 2018 and beyond. In 2017, the batonga foundation maximized its resources and demonstrated its ability to develop and deliver innovative solutions that impact the lives and livelihoods of the most excluded young women and girls in benin. Batonga's girls clubs have improved girls' critical skills and assets, fostered entrepreneurship and promoted economic opportunities. Batonga has laid the foundation for sustainable growth in future years by building robust partnerships and developing best practices in reaching the most vulnerable adolescent girls.