Dear Friends,
When people ask why Rain for the Sahel and Sahara (RAIN) works in Niger, I think about distance.
- Distance to school.
- Distance to water.
- Distance to healthcare.
- Distance to opportunity.
In the Agadez Region, where we work alongside rural and nomadic communities, a girl’s chance of continuing her education is not just about ability, it’s about access. In Niger, more than half of children are out of school, and only a small fraction of girls complete secondary education. In remote areas, those odds are even lower.
But education is only one piece of the story. Families are navigating daily tradeoffs:
- Women are working, but mostly in vulnerable, low-income conditions
- Climate shocks (drought, flood, extreme heat, land degradation) are accelerating
- Health services are often far away
And yet, what stands out is not just the challenge, but resilience.
Women are building livelihoods with very limited resources. Families are prioritizing education against the odds. Communities are adapting to a changing climate with deep local knowledge.
RAIN exists to invest in that resilience. We focus on:
- Education pathways for girls from remote communities
- Women’s entrepreneurship and savings networks
- Water access and food security
- Regenerative agriculture to restore land and strengthen livelihoods
Because in places like Agadez, these are not separate challenges. They are part of the same system. And when they are addressed together, communities move from managing risk… to shaping their own future.
Please join us for the RAIN Dance on June 18th to support this vital work. Tickets can be purchased here.
