Evaluation of an International Cooperation Project for the Access to Education of Children and Adolescents in Rural Areas of Senegal: A Social Work Perspective

Violeta Quiroga Raimúndez, Marta Arranz Montull (), Joan Casas-Martí and Belén Paula Martínez González
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Violeta Quiroga Raimúndez: School of Social Work, Universitat de Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
Marta Arranz Montull: School of Social Work, Universitat de Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
Joan Casas-Martí: School of Social Work, Universitat de Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
Belén Paula Martínez González: School of Social Work, Universitat de Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain

Social Sciences, 2025, vol. 14, issue 6, 1-17

Abstract: Limited access to education in rural areas of Senegal is a structural barrier to human development and equal opportunities. The Bicycles for Education project, promoted by the Utopia Foundation—Bicycles Without Borders (BSF), aims to improve the educational participation of young people aged 12 to 21 by providing bicycles to facilitate their travel to school. In this study, the GRITS research group from the University of Barcelona externally evaluates the impact of the project on improving access to education, reducing gender inequalities, and the associated socioeconomic as well as community benefits. A qualitative approach based on individual interviews ( n = 23), focus groups ( n = 6) and group interviews ( n = 8) was used, with a total of 80 participants, including students, families, teachers, project coordinators, and institutional managers. The analysis was carried out through thematic coding and content analysis, identifying four main axes: educational impact, gender equity, economic effects, and community transformation. The results show that the provision of bicycles throughout the school year led to increased school attendance and punctuality, improvements in academic performance, a reduction in social inequalities, gender inequalities in access to education, and a decrease in household costs associated with transport and food. In addition, there has been a cultural transformation in the perception of cycling as a viable means of mobility and a change in those communities where the project has been running for more than a decade.

Keywords: international cooperation; access to education; Senegal; social work; community transformation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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