Our friend Demba lives in Dakar, Senegal, and is a graduate of the nation's top university, the Université de Cheikh Anta Diop. However, finding sustainable work in Dakar has been difficult. So, we're trying to help him start a small business that he has been planning for the past few years.

The growing city is home to dozens of markets and small retailers where most people do their shopping, from food, to homewares, to fabrics and clothes. Demba has identified an important need: to increase transportation options between wholesalers, semi-wholesalers, and retail vendors.

To do this, he's developed a business plan to secure and upkeep a three-wheel cargo scooter and a smaller two-wheel scooter. With these, he and a second employee will help move goods, animals, prepared foods, and documents easily through the city on behalf of multiple clients.

In June, people across Senegal will be preparing for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha (locally known as Tabaski). This will be a huge opportunity for Demba to help meet the increasing demand for the transportation of food and fabrics as residents of Dakar prepare for their Tabaski celebrations. We're raising money now so that he can get his equipment and his business rolling in time!

(Outside Dakar's Kermal market)