FCBARCELONA.CAT

28.10.2007 12:02

Senegal: satisfactory balance

Marc Parramon

The FC Barcelona delegation, which has been in Senegal to inaugurate a XICS centre, is satisfied with the initiative which Hill provide 150,000 Euros and three years of field work.

Beyond its great alliance with Unicef and the work undertaken in Swaziland, the Club’s Foundation is carrying out a wide social, cultural and solidarity programme. The XICS programme is a great example. This international network of solidarity centres has begun its first chapter this week.

This city chosen to build the first centre has been Richard Toll, a poor town in north Senegal near the border Mauritania. There has been a buzz of excitement around the town this week with the inauguration of the centre . It lies in an area virtually untouched by international aid, due to the poor state of road and rail connections. The town is a victim of Senegal’s centralism, which results in the area of Dakar and its environs, as well as the areas in the south in political conflict, receiving most of the country’s international aid.

Funding

The FC Barcelona Foundation has undertaken the building of this centre, designing the type of collaboration offered, setting the objectives and choosing the entities that have helped the project. What’s more, the Foundation has also financed the construction of the centre with 150,000 Euros, thanks to the collaboration of the Agencia Catalana de Cooperación al Desarrollo (ACCD) and the Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional (AECI). These two cooperation agencies have pledged 60,000 Euros towards running the centre for the first year.

Three years in the field

The Foundation’s direct involvement in this project will last three years, which is standard in international cooperation. The Foundation will fund the running of the centre for the next two years, whilst already working on the involvement of local entities.

Institutional aid

The Local Council of Richard Toll has also collaborated in the project, ceding the land on an indefinite basis, and laying on water and electricity supplies. ASBEF, the Senegalese family welfare association, has co-managed the Project, and has recruited the centre’s director and staff. The Barcelona AIDS 2002 Foundation will provide child healthcare, and finally, local community and religious leaders will be ensuring that the local children, especially the “talibés”, will take part in the cooperation programmes. The Foundation has also assigned a field coordinator to make sure the programme achieves its objectives.