When we opened the new WAVS flagship campus in Bissau, the capital of Guinea-Bissau, we knew we were taking a risk.
We were new to Bissau. People in the neighborhood weren’t familiar with us. And the campus wasn’t exactly easy to get to for anyone not living in the immediate vicinity. It’s located on 28 acres of land on the edge of the city, down a dusty and bumpy dirt road.
We wondered: would any students actually show up?
Our first classes began in April 2022. We were pleasantly surprised when 33 tuition-paying students enrolled that term. There was definitely interest!
Then, as time went on, word spread around town. Despite the out-of-the-way location of the campus, students would travel up to 2 hours each way, every day, taking multiple public transit vehicles and sometimes walking the last mile or so – just to study at WAVS.
Each term, more students enrolled. In fact, over the last two years, the Bissau campus has seen an average 20% growth in enrollment every single 4-month term! As of this month, since opening in 2022, the new campus has trained more than 500 students.
Enrollment at the Bissau campus has grown by an average of 20% every 4-month term since early 2023.
New Programs and Expanding Opportunities at WAVS Bissau Campus
Last fall, we had to start turning away students eager to enroll in the WAVS welding training program because the class was already full. Unfortunately, those students will have to wait until this fall to try to enroll again. Fortunately, we’re in the process of completing construction on a training facility that will allow us to triple the number of welding students we can accept each year. This new facility will also allow us to launch new programs in machining and carpentry.
One of the students lucky enough to get in to the welding program this year is named Espéria, though she’s better known by her nickname “Ma.” Ma is the first woman to enroll in the WAVS welding program.
“I decided to study welding because it’s a course that I’ve liked for a long time,” Ma told us. “After I leave the school, I want to open my own workshop and have my own helpers and apprentices.”
Ma told us she was incredibly thankful for donors who have helped give her and her fellow students this opportunity in life.
As the campus continues to grow and more students enroll, we’re excited to meet more young men and women like Ma as they pursue a brighter future!
Join One Student, a community of monthly donors giving young people in Guinea-Bissau the opportunity to build a brighter future. At WAVS vocational schools, students invest in their education by paying a small portion of their tuition. When you sponsor a student, you help cover the rest—making their training possible.
