Amics d'Ak-Benn

Supporting a community project in Senegal

Amics d'Ak-Benn is a volunteer-run nonprofit founded in 2005 to support Ak Benn, a project started by the Taizé brothers (Kër Taizé) in Dakar's Grand Yoff neighborhood. Based in Teià, Barcelona, the association raises resources and awareness for Ak Benn's educational, social, and training programs.

Ak Benn's work in Dakar

The Taizé brothers began Ak Benn in 1995 after arriving in Grand Yoff in 1992. The project aims to build connections among neighbors, young people and children, the neighborhood and the ocean, job seekers and the workplace, and different cultures and religions. Activities have included:

• Educational activities for children, guided by the Wolof saying “li nga xam jangal ko ko” (“teach others what you know”) and the name Ak Benn (“and one more,” a call to go further).
• Training young people to lead activities for younger children.
• Sewing and garment-making training for women and girls, producing goods sold at fairs in Dakar and cities across Europe.
• Revista Ak Benn, a magazine documenting the project and its activities, with nearly 100 issues.

A new school initiative

In July 2024, Kër Taizé–Ak Benn moved to Bayakh, near the Grand Yoff-area community of Gorom 1 in Bambilor, to begin a new project: Collège Avenir Plus (C.A.P.) in Gorom-1. Amics d'Ak-Benn has shifted its support toward this educational initiative. The association has reduced its handicraft sales, and the sewing workshop in Grand Yoff has closed because it became difficult to maintain.

Office and contact

The Teià office is at 15 Carrer Enric Borràs, ground floor, unit 2A, Teià, Barcelona 08329. Call 93 555 0929, 616 85 44 56 (Josefa), 653 90 20 13 (Mima), or 685 46 34 11 (Jordi). Email amics-ak-benn@ak-benn.eu. Visits are by appointment.