As shovels dug up earth and bricks were being laid in what would be Diadiakh Tock’s primary school in 2016, Thierno was just 10 years of age. Already, by that time, the young boy had had a heavy struggle on his adolescent hands to realise his right to education. As it happened, when Thierno was seven, he had been enrolled at a school in a neighbouring village. However, his entry into education was tragically short lived. That school in the nearby village was approximately 3 kilometres away from his home in Diadiakh Tock, a serious hike for a child his age. Ultimately, he only lasted a couple months before the distance to school and his family’s circumstance got the better of his prospects for education and he dropped out. Instead, as the youngest child, his time would be spent tending to his family’s livestock, herding and grazing the cattle – in Thierno’s Serer community this is a common practice, whereby the youngest boy serves as the family shepherd.

For three years, Thierno’s situation endured. He supported his family by shepherding the livestock between the months of July and December. In the off-months, he would attend a local religious school. Whilst the village’s religious school taught language and holy recitations; there was no academic instruction. One can only imagine the thoughts, hopes and frustrations that filled the young boy’s mind, as he had experienced first-hand the difficulty associated with attempting to go to school and what lays in wait for those who, for one reason or another, cannot make the daily hike. It is clear that in Thierno’s part of Senegal, boys in his age range who are not in school, often either focus on farming activities or finding some form of employ.

Yet a new day was about to bloom on the horizon. Critically, the community sensitisation practice, led by the EAC-buildOn project, was nearing completion in his village and his parents, Niokhor and Ami, had an invigorated perception of the value of education! They had agreed to enrol Thierno in the accelerated-learning classes on offer in July 2016, so that he would be ready for school in October! In effect, their youngest son would no longer be spending his time shepherding cattle.

As a result of the accelerated programme, Thierno acquired a solid foundation in reading, writing and Mathematics and as it turned out, he was a strong and capable student. In October 2016, Thierno tested into class 2 at his village’s newly built school. A short two years later, he would complete level 4 and finish at the top of his class. Another two years thence in October 2020, Thierno started class 6, eventually passing the primary-level examinations, which opened the door to secondary schooling!