Francescon project to support melon pickers in Senegal

The company based in Rodigo has been involved in a very important project for a few years to help Tassette, the Senegalese village where the melon pickers live.Together with Coop Italia and with the support of the John Paul II foundation in Florence, OP Francescon contributes 5 cents per kilo of income to the project, to support the village of the Senegal countryside. Tassette is located 80 km from Dakar, and before the arrival of the Mantuan company it was an area of high ​​unemployment. As the commercial director Silvano Chieregati explains, «Going there means going into a void. They have no services, nothing», so since 2012, in addition to creating a job opportunity for 250 melon pickers, OP Francescon helps the inhabitants by bringing services to the production area to improve living conditions. Thanks to the 160 hectares that can be cultivated each year, the contributions lead to the collection of 50 thousand euros. Over the years this money has been invested to build a new medical centre equipped with all the necessary equipment, with eight beds and an ambulance with a doctor present in the facility four days a week.

The next step? «At the village there is a ruined school that we want to redevelop, adding the toilets and four new classrooms, to accommodate 300 students. We have already bought all the equipment», explains Bruno Francescon. Next school year, the Tassette boys will benefit from a new school.

Source: Gazzetta di Mantova