Life After Child Forced Begging in Senegal’s daaras: The Trajectories of talibés After They Leave Exploitative marabouts

Author: Furlan, Marta

Abstract: An estimated 100,000 children in Quranic schools across Senegal are forced by their teachers to beg and are exposed to neglect, sexual abuse, and violence. Very little, however, is known about the experiences that children go through as they leave those abusive environments. To address this lacuna, this research investigates the dynamics whereby children leave exploitative schools, the vulnerabilities that children face upon leaving, and the impact that those vulnerabilities have on their lives. Findings indicate that some children run away from exploitative schools before time and join life on the streets. Among those, some are found and rescued, whereas others end up in begging, criminality, or armed groups – perhaps addicted to substances, exploited, or trafficked. Most children, however, remain in exploitative schools until the end of their “studies.” After leaving, unskilled and uneducated, the majority end up working in informal labor-intensive jobs, where the risks of exploitation are high. A few others remain within the informal school system, becoming assistants to abusive teachers. Building on these findings, we offer a series of recommendations to the Senegalese government to ensure the protection, reintegration, and rehabilitation of Quranic students after they leave exploitative schools and advance progress toward SDG 8.7 and SDG 16.2.

Keywords: Talibés, Quranic schools, street children, exploitation, vulnerability, Senegal