Designing a Strategy to Provide Primary Education in Rural Guinea-Bissau

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Over the course of several months, seven graduate students from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) completed a short-term consultancy project for the Guinea-Bissau based agri-business Frutas e Legumes, working to support the launch of its recently established foundation, Ubuntu. Guinea-Bissau is one of the poorest countries in the world, with extreme political instability and a severely underdeveloped economy, yet its population demonstrates a willingness to engage with new opportunities. There is an established presence of local, regional, and international organizations carrying out important work to support the country's development. Frutas e Legumes, its farmer-led cooperative AGRIECO, and the Ubuntu Foundation have come together to harness the spirit of Bissau-Guineans and to provide meaningful economic and social opportunities in the rural communities where they operate. Through the course of two site visits, the SIPA team established the scope of its project—developing a strategy for Ubuntu—and carried out extensive field work. To help structure Ubuntu's strategy, they conducted a preliminary needs-assessment and, more generally, identified needs in the community. This report is designed to be a practical and actionable document for the executive team of Frutas e Legumes, AGRIECO, and the Ubuntu Foundation. It is the culmination of months of research, literature reviews, networking, conversations, fieldwork, and analysis. It includes a strategic plan for Ubuntu in the areas of education, health, and recreation that responds to the needs-assessment, as well as a fundraising and partnerships strategy that aims to capture stable funding and reliable partners to support the foundation in meeting its mission.