Abené is a hospitable and lively Mandingo and Diola village in the southern province of Senegal, Casamance, with approximately 3000 inhabitants. It is located about 45 kilometers from the border with Gambia. The village has a small mosque, a church, a school, a medical first aid post and a small bank.
Full of optimism and willpower, the population tries to make something of life and strives for a better future. The people there mainly live from practical horticulture. The emerging tourism in the region offers some people more perspective. Shops and call centers are opened and a Dutch organization even contributes to the construction and maintenance of water pipes and electricity grid.
The location where the orphanage is being built is in the center of the village, approximately a twenty-five minute walk and a 15-minute bike ride from the beach of the Atlantic Ocean.
The people there are very poor and there is no industry or other employment.