ArcelorMittal’s Solidarity Holidays – a rare journey through Senegal

From the moment in May 2011 when I learnt that I would be taking part in the Solidarity Holidays, I started counting down the days till September, when I would leave for Senegal to take part in the volunteering opportunity that ArcelorMittal provides its employees through the ArcelorMittal Foundation.

I set off from Pamplona, Spain, and arrived in Dakar for the long-awaited moment when I finally met my other European colleagues from Belgium, Luxembourg, France and Spain. Together, we would be supporting local populations through different initiatives.

But we would not be alone in our endeavour, as we were joined by other Senegalese volunteers. We all left for Saraya located about 750km from the capital in the South-Eastern region of the country, where we would be spending the week.

On Day 1, we distributed the tasks among the 40 or so volunteers with our main  activities including helping run the medical camp at Baralaya village, painting schools and some administrative things like document filing.
I feel lucky to have been able to take part in almost all of the activities that week. I found that people in Senegal are always willing to give a hand, with a smile in their faces and a special something in their eyes that cannot fail to move you. The whole experience made me re-think Europe and feel like there is a big part of the human spirit we need to recover.

In Africa

Being in a remote corner of Senegal, I saw a part of Africa that you will not see if you travel there for the typical holidays – a place where there is no running water, where women wash themselves and their clothes in ponds or streams, in the same parasite-laden water they use to drink, which in some cases causes blindness. I saw areas where there is no electricity; where colourfully-dressed women carry their children on their backs and heavy loads on their heads, where sadly the population is subject to diseases and under nourishment that kill many of them. Therefore, being able to contribute to bringing healthcare to people through this opportunity was even more meaningful.

I will never forget a 30-year-old mother with 5 kids, affectionately looking after her youngest son who was about 2 years old and who showed signs of moderate malnutrition. She seemed to be blind in one eye. As we were taking them to Saraya hospital, she spent the entire journey in the car protecting him from the air conditioning.

Another very moving experience was taking part in the cleaning activities and helping to paint schools and healthcare centres, together with the members of the local community. I remember the school at Saraya, where I worked with the children who, I would like to believe, are the future of Africa. These children painted the school with us, always holding out their hands, willing to help me move something or just to pass me the paint, and who even sang some songs in Spanish with me.

Thank you

I will always be grateful for this opportunity to experience Senegal and Africa. I feel very proud wearing the orange T-shirt given to me as a Solidarity Holidays participant. This experience also gave me the push I needed to go back to the volunteering activities I was involved in a few years ago. What I experienced in Senegal will be the shot of adrenaline I need to keep me going in difficult times.

I think it is essential that ArcelorMittal continues to carry out humanitarian projects. I believe that thanks to this Solidarity Holiday week, several lives were saved in Senegal. This alone is ample reason for continuing the work started there. I would also like to encourage all my colleagues to take on experiences of this kind, which help us grow as individuals and help us transform tomorrow. Together, we can do it.

Author: Carmen Toni, Supplier Accounting, Construction (Distribution Solutions), Berrioplano, Spain