"This project changed my life.”

I felt really isolated after returning from the backway, but a friend of mine encouraged me to join the Migrants as Messengers project. With my fellow MaM Volunteers, we can seek out support and advice from each other to help us cope. Not everyone may care about my story, but my peers do, and they understand what I have gone through as we all faced the same kind of pain and trauma.  

I am proud of all the activities I have participated in, with my favorite one being the activities that were held in my hometown of Basse, in the Upper River Region. This region is a hotspot when it comes to irregular migration and having the opportunity to talk to my community made me so proud.

To raise awareness about irregular migration we held bantabas, where the community comes together to engage in village-wide discussions and make decisions. Through this, they came to learn more about my story and the backway journey. I shared how I wasted so much time in Libya and left not knowing the hardships, inhumane treatment and pain that I would encounter on the way. 

I never regretted joining MaM, because through this project, my abilities grew immensely. Today I can stand in front of any crowd to give a speech. I can control my stress and I earned a lot of respect and trust in my town. I hope that sharing my experience will inspire the youth in The Gambia and their families.