Mali: Fight against the exploitation of housemaids

Mali is one of the ten poorest countries worldwide. Every second child under the age of 18 works and contributes to family income. Many girls leave their villages to work as a housemaid in the big cities. But most of them are completely unprepared and soon find themselves in forced situations: they are poorly paid for, have far too long working hours, don't get enough to eat, are abused or sexually abused. APSEF (Association Pour La Promotion of the Droite et Le Bien être de la Family) was registered as a non -governmental organization in 2006. However, their employees informed women and children in rural areas about their rights beforehand. The collaboration with Terre des Hommes began in 2012 with a study on the situation of housemaid in the capital Bamako. The project is currently being financed by the Agnes Philippine Walter Foundation.

In order to fundamentally improve the situation of young domestic workers, everyone involved must be included, including landlords of accommodation, employment agents, employers, local authorities and the media. APSEF invites you to regular meetings, in which there is talk about the rights, but also about the duties of the domestic workers. When the employees of girls who are in an emergency, they offer them support, for example by admission to a protection center or legal support.

Apsef also works in the villages: In regular meetings with mothers, teachers, municipal officials, village elders and young people themselves, the organization provides information about the diverse risks with which young girls are faced with. If possible, APSEF tries to create alternatives on site. For this purpose, mothers and their daughters are included in small saver programs and trained in generating additional income. Apsef also tries to prevent girls from leaving school too early to try their luck in the city.

So far, Apsef has only reached a small group of families, domestic workers and employers, so it will expand their work. Together with other organizations, APSEF wants to make the security network for home -employees closer and also take politicians responsible for enforcing the existing occupational safety laws.