WHO WE ARE
The Three Sisters Foundation is a non-profit organization that aims to empower young girls and women in West Africa through education and economic opportunities. Our focus is on providing access to education, vocational training, and entrepreneurship programs for youth and their families who are at risk of being left behind due to poverty, lack of access to resources, and gender discrimination.
We work in partnership with local communities, artisans, and educators to create sustainable solutions that help break the cycle of poverty and promote gender equality.
Our approach is holistic, addressing not only immediate needs but also long-term empowerment and community development. Through our work, we hope to create a brighter future for the children and families we serve and their communities as a whole.
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WE’VE BEEN BUSY
Check out the list below. We have had great success, and we have momentum. We would love your help.
Tutoring Program
We provide weekly tutoring sessions for youth in Benin to ensure that more girls and boys gain valuable skills and remain in school. This is our flagship program, and 92% of the students in our program advance each year. We started this program in 2014 and the first two alumni are currently attending Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Benin and Morocco.
Community Engagement
We work with the community to identify needs and co-create solutions. Past projects have included developing bilingual books, training women's groups on entrepreneurship and marketing, and building latrines at a primary school.
Cultural Preservation
Our office is a local resource hub where community members can check out a book from our lending library, gather to share culture and history, and view the exhibit of material culture developed as part of the PreCArt project. We were the recipients of the US Ambassador's Fund for Cultural Preservation in 2019, which funded PreCArt.
STEPS Project
We are taking part in a research project aimed at developing the capacity of primary school science and math teachers. The project is taking place in Benin, Cameroon, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. It's funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and implemented by NextGenU.
The TEAM
THE THREE SISTERS TEAM
We are a group of anthropologists, educators, philanthropists, and cultural preservationists. Over ten years ago co-founders Anie Semassoussi and Marcy Hessling O'Neil met with community members in Cotonou who believed that educating their children could help them break the cycle of generational poverty. While they wanted their children to succeed, many of the parents had missed out on the opportunity to attend school themselves and felt unprepared to help their children with their studies.
We co-created the TSEF tutoring program to provide support to these families, and our journey has expanded to include cultural preservation and literacy projects, STEM education teacher support, and Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene projects. Our Benin staff includes Three Sisters co-founder Anie Gandoto Semassoussi, TSEF Executive Director Sandrine Chikou, Head Tutor Donald Linkou, and Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist Judith Vlafonou.
OUR PARTNERS
Three Sisters Foundation and the Trois Soeurs Education Fund are grateful for the partnership and support of the U.S. Embassy in Cotonou, 365 Retail Markets, The Global Youth Advancement Network, Michigan State University's Lab for the Education and Advancement in Digital Research, the Alliance for African Partnership, NextGenU and the International Development Research Centre.
Ready to give the gift of education?
100% of your donations will fund tutoring for primary and secondary students.
Three Sisters Trois Soeurs Foundation
501(c)(3) non-profit
EIN 87-2562036