Burkina Faso, formerly Upper Volta, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It borders Mali, Niger, Benin, Togo, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. The World Development Report ranks it 183rd out of 186 countries, with a human development index of 0.343 (UNDP Human Development Report-2013). Switzerland has an HDI equal to 0.903 and is in ninth place.

In Burkina Faso, education is compulsory between the ages of 7 and 13 and although it is free, the net school attendance rate is 47% and the adult literacy rate is 29%. There is a lack of primary schools, and in the functioning schools there is a lack of space. One of the fundamental rights of children is education.

It was inaugurated in 2016 in Kosodo of Tanlarghin, financed with €133,649. It was extended in 2021 and 2023, totaling €300,000.

Numerous water wells have been financed in Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire and other countries, as well as donations to Franciscan missions and associations for education and child welfare in Kenya and Guatemala.

On October 15, 2016, the school complex was inaugurated in Kosodo de Tanlarghin, in the municipality of Saaba, Burkina Faso. The school, named “Renato Grandi School Complex”, is an initiative of the association Renato Sourire d’Enfants Burkina (ARSEB), chaired by Mr. Sansan Palè.

We call this school a “Complex” because it is composed of three educational levels: an elementary school, a college and a high school. Children enter at the age of 5 or 6 and leave at 17 with the Bachillerato, ready to enter university.

In the next school year 2025 – 2026 we will have one more class, and in the school year 2026 – 2027 we will open the last primary class to complete the cycle.

The school complex has developed progressively, as you will have noticed from the table. Every year, approximately 35% of the children are enrolled in school free of charge.

Financed by the Renato Grandi Foundation with 133,649 euros (including the purchase of the land, fencing, well, furniture and inauguration), the school complex extends over two hectares and consists of:

• 6 classrooms for primary education.
• A house for the guardian and his family.
• An administrative building.
• Adequate sanitary services.
• A well with a pump powered by solar panels.

The project is not-for-profit, and a portion of the family members contribute to school costs. However, families who cannot afford them receive support from the Renato Grandi Foundation.

Since its creation, the Renato Grandi School Complex has transformed the daily lives of the local population, changing the lives of many children and their families by facilitating access to local education. Support has been provided especially to orphans who would not have had the opportunity to receive a quality education.

• Each year, the CSRG success rate is higher than the national rate.
• The population around the school has tripled, as it benefits from a nearby school and access to drinking water thanks to the well built by ARSEB.
• Many girls are in school thanks to the enormous awareness-raising work carried out by ARSEB to convince parents. We fight against forced marriages of young girls studying in our school.
• Every year, ARSEB organizes a day of awareness and detection of certain diseases such as hepatitis, HIV, sickle cell disease, among others.
• Since its creation, our complex has become one of the reference schools in Burkina Faso.

ARSEB takes care of some sick children and we help the families by giving them sacks of rice and various food products.

In summary, the CSRG is a school that has positively changed the lives of the beneficiary populations.

We want to infinitely thank a great man with the heart of an angel: Engineer ARMANDO GRANDI. You are still alive through the works you have done in this land.

• In 2021, 6 additional classrooms were expanded for primary school (123,513.40 euros, including inauguration).
• In 2023, 2 more classrooms were added, bringing the total to:
  • 14 classrooms (6 for elementary school, 5 for middle school and 3 for high school).
  • 12 toilets.
  • An administrative building.
  • An enclosure and a sports field.
  • A house for the guardian.
  • Total cost assumed by the FRG: €300,000, including the multipurpose building for the ARSEB school in 2019 (€11,770.75).

The Renato Grandi Foundation undertook the entire ARSEB project, including:

• A well to supply water to the school and villagers.
• A building with 6 classrooms, an office, a storage room and latrines.

Quote from Sansan ¨We started with 2 classrooms in 2016, and today, those children are already attending university. Some continue to receive support from ARSEB, while others have started working.

For the 2024-2025 school year, the complex has 460 children enrolled.