A baby boy for Elodie – an ACT Alumni

Elodie with baby Mawuna and husband Emmanuel

Elodie, as one of our alumni, has just reached another important milestone in her life – having a baby! This gives opportunity to reflect on the significant challenges Elodie, who lives in Burkina Faso, has had to overcome to get to this exciting point.

Burkina Faso is the 20^th poorest country in the world meaning there are significant barriers to ensuring education for children. While there have been strides made towards ensuring universal primary education for the country’s population, the majority of children do not go on to attend secondary school. University enrolment rates have also improved but it is still a rarity for individuals to be in tertiary education.

Elodie not only faced these institutional barriers, but also personal ones. Born in 1993, Elodie’s father sadly died in a motor accident when she was only 6 years old. Following this her mother became ill and was soon unable to work which meant the possibility of having to withdraw Elodie and her sister Josiphia, from school in Kongoussi. In 2005 ACT began providing support to Elodie’s family, in helping to cover costs for school including meals, uniforms and supplies, this allowed them to continue their education.

It is in light of these barriers that Elodie’s progress is so impressive. She excelled in school, allowing her to read Law at the University of Ouagadougou, where she graduated in 2016. Elodie has also gone on to obtain a Masters degree in Law which is another huge achievement.

Having gotten married in September 2020, Elodie had a baby boy in June 2021 which is wonderful news; he is named Mawuna which means ‘gift of God’. Elodie, despite educational and now familial commitments, has been such an active volunteer for ACT. She is active in the ACT alumni network in Burkina Faso, which is made up of young people that ACT supported to complete their education, and now want to help to continue the work that ACT does so that other children can be helped. Elodie recognises how important it is to help children who are otherwise forgotten as she remarked.

Baby Mawuna

“How many orphans are lost because there was no one to help them? Seeing that there are others who need help and knowing that I too have been supported, this encourages and inspires me to lend my modest support to ACT.”

While Elodie is now busy caring for Mawuna, she has been proactive in supporting Hope Mission which, with ACT, is preparing to support a new set of children as of September.

ACT is for the children otherwise forgotten

Elodie is just one of thousands of children ACT has been able to support. Right now, as the world continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, your support is more important than ever to ensure we can provide help to the growing number of orphans and fatherless children in the African countries we work in. For £15 a month you could sponsor a child to help transform a life just as Elodie’s was.

To find out more click here.