Bringing hope of a better future for the young people of Abuko, Gambia.

The small town of Abuko, with a population of about 8,000 people, is situated near Gambia’s first designated wildlife reserve, attracting thousands of tourists every year.

However, despite regular tourism in the nearby Abuko Nature Reserve, the needs of many young people from Abuko continue to be unmet. Many are forced out of education early due to their families not having the income to pay their school fees. Lack of education and employment opportunities can also lead to many despairing situations such as girls entering the prostitution trade or being forced into early marriages. Many youths often make dangerous emigration journeys abroad, with the hope of finding better employment opportunities in the West.

The Abuko Youth Centre is being developed by The KORI Youth Charity (a registered charity in England and Wales, No. 1142628), with the aim of bringing new informal learning experiences and opportunities to the doorsteps of the young people of Abuko.

We envision that the space will be used in three ways:

(1) A place for local youth to gather in a safe and caring environment, where self-directed learning and skill sharing can take place.

(2) A place for the youth to invite local adults that will freely share their skills and experiences with them.

(3) A place where individuals from the UK can come to share skills and offer training to the local youth to improve their employment opportunities. (For more information on our Youth 18-30 Programme, visit www.thevessel.org.uk.) 

KORI will also aim to support local youth from Abuko in building partnerships with other organisations.

In order to achieve our Vision, we need your help in reaching our £10,000 fundraising target. We will gladly accept any amount, whether £5 or £500! If you would like to find out more about KORI, our values and what we are doing in the local community, please visit our website:

www.kori.org.uk.