Opening Minds: Minister Yahdan Yada Helps Open Four New Schools in Senegal

School – is it a curse or a blessing? Your answer often depends on where you live. In countries where learning is guaranteed, you may see it as a burden that must be endured until you finally graduate from high school. However, Minister Yahdan Yada knows from personal experience that when schools and teachers are scarce, an education is an incredible luxury that can open doors to a better life – if only you can sit down in a classroom. Perhaps this is why he has been working the past few years to open four new schools in Ngogom, one of Senegal’s poorest regions: as someone who grew up in poverty, he understands the miraculous power of educating your mind.

The story of how Minister Yada, the founder/CEO of The World’s Greatest Rejuvenation and Yadalo Group SA, helped get hundreds of children into classrooms begins in his childhood. Growing up, he struggled to find love and acceptance, as he was abandoned by his father, neglected by the adults in his life, and abused. With a shortage of schools and qualified teachers, he also was in and out of school. 

“Ultimately, this meant that by the time I was an adult, I lacked healthy self-esteem as well as the self-discipline that you can develop from being a student,” Minister Yada says. “It was a poor foundation for adulthood, and I bounced from job to job, trying to find myself but failing miserably. This took a terrible toll on my health, career, and personal relationships.”

The solution was two-fold: self-love and a cultivated, disciplined mind. He shares that one of his biggest breakthroughs came when he made the choice to love himself, which included eating the right foods, focusing on positivity, and filling his life with life-affirming people.

“Self-love was key,” Minister Yada confirms. “But, at the same time, I also began to enrich my mind. I read more. I learned more about the world and other cultures. I formed my own opinions and ideas for improving society. All the things I should have been doing when I was in school.”

While learning to love himself and continuing his education have been instrumental in his success, he cannot forget the millions of Senegalese children who are out of school. Clearing the way for children in Ngogom to receive their own education was an easy choice to make. He says, “I believe that when you have much, you must help those who have very little, especially when you have been in their shoes. That’s why I decided to increase educational opportunities in Senegal.”

Minister Yada joined forces with Momar Ngum, the mayor of Ngogom, and Alfityanu Humanitaire International, whose network of NGOs fights against extreme poverty and inequality of opportunity. Their goal was to build and open four new schools in Ngogom and ultimately give vulnerable children full access to education and the ability to contribute to social, cultural, and economic life.

“It has been an absolute joy to help open these schools, and you wouldn’t believe the excitement in the community,” Minister Yada says. “Everyone understands what an incredible opportunity this is, and while it has been hard work, every second has been worth it.”

At the new schools, children begin attending classes at age six. Around age 11, they enter the lower-secondary phase; as young adults, they can enter the upper-secondary phase and take general continued education and personal enrichment courses. Instruction is given in the Qur’an, Arabic (language and grammar), French (language and grammar), Hadith, Fiqh, computer studies, and coding.

Minister Yada believes deeply in computer education because of the excellent career possibilities that it offers. Accordingly, he used his personal money to purchase computers for the entire student body and to hire coding teachers.

“Many career paths require computer knowledge, so I wanted to build a bridge between the education that students receive and the workforce they will enter as adults,” he explains. “It is vital that they learn practical skills that will prepare them to be innovators across industries and do their own part to make our world better.”

For his efforts to educate students of all ages in Ngogom, Minister Yada was appointed Ambassador of the municipality. He was deeply appreciative of the honor but says it really belongs to the community as a whole.

“Building and opening these schools took the work, vision, and dedication of hundreds of people across Ngogom,” Minster Yada says. “Everyone understands that by educating their children, they are creating a future where anything can happen – and will.”