The verdict in three sentences
In four weeks at 15 to 20 minutes a day, you can restart English from the alphabet and hold a first simple conversation at work: introduce yourself, spell an email, give a price, ask someone to repeat. The course Beginner English: introduce yourself, understand and be understood, taught in French, level 1 Beginner, 25,000 FCFA (38 EUR), 8 h, is built on exactly this rhythm. In Dakar, reception, sales or ride-hailing driver jobs that ask for basic English usually pay 20,000 to 50,000 FCFA more a month (about 30 to 76 EUR), depending on the job, and the course guarantees neither a job nor a salary.
The week-by-week plan
The course has four modules, one per week. Each lesson takes 14 to 18 minutes and contains a vocabulary list, a short dialogue set in Dakar, Abidjan or Accra, and exercises marked online. The rule is simple: one lesson or one exercise a day, out loud, rather than three hours on Sunday.
| Week | Module | What you work on | What you can do by the end |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sounds, alphabet and numbers | Spelling, th, aspirated h, short and long i, numbers, prices, dates, dictionary phonetics | Spell your name and email, dictate a number, state a price in FCFA |
| 2 | Greeting, introducing yourself, being polite | Greetings, the verb to be, your job in three sentences, please, sorry, excuse me | Open a conversation and say who you are |
| 3 | Present simple and everyday vocabulary | Present simple, do, does, don't, time and days, 150 work words | Talk about your schedule and set a simple appointment |
| 4 | Making yourself understood in simple situations | Simple sentences, what, where, when, who, how much, rescue phrases, dialogues | Welcome a visitor, take an order, give directions |
| End of week 4 | Final project (1 h 30) | Write and record your introduction, complete your survival sheet | A one-minute introduction and 40 ready-to-use phrases |
A typical day fits in a quarter of an hour: 5 minutes reviewing yesterday's words in Anki, 7 minutes of lesson or exercise, 3 minutes recording yourself on your phone and listening back. The course includes listening exercises with audio recordings (synthetic English voices, British, American and African accents), playable at slower speed, with the transcript. To go further on pronunciation, lessons also send you to free native-speaker tools (Cambridge Dictionary, Forvo, YouGlish), then have you compare with your own recording. You can also send yourself WhatsApp voice notes to track progress.
After four weeks you have produced: your one-minute introduction in English, written and recorded; your pronunciation sheet with the alphabet, the 10 tricky sounds and your 20 difficult words; your list of the first 300 useful words sorted by situation; your 40-phrase survival sheet; three ready-to-use dialogues (welcoming a visitor, setting an appointment, giving directions); and a 15-minute daily routine so you do not forget it all.
What starting English costs in Dakar
| Option | Indicative cost 2026 | Pace | What is missing or added |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kolonell Academy, level 1 Beginner | 25,000 FCFA (38 EUR), 8 h | 15 to 20 min a day, 4 weeks | Written lessons, PDFs, quizzes, final project, certificate |
| Beginner course at a Dakar institute | Roughly 60,000 to 150,000 FCFA per session | Fixed hours, travel | Group speaking practice |
| BBC Learning English, free apps | 0 FCFA | Free | No guided path for West African French speakers |
| Full Business English track (5 levels) | 350,000 FCFA instead of 450,000 | Several months | Up to leadership English and technical English |
| Doing nothing | 0 FCFA | None | Job ads asking for English ruled out, English-speaking customers lost |
Module 1 is free to view before paying: the best way to check the pace suits you. The course works on a phone over 3G with no app to install, and access is lifetime, updates included.
The natural next step is level 2, Office English (emails, phone and daily exchanges), in the Business English track, whose five levels cost 350,000 FCFA instead of 450,000.
Who this plan really helps
In Dakar, basic English matters most in customer-facing jobs: a Gambian customer in the shop, a tourist at reception, a Nigerian passenger in a ride-hailing car, a Ghanaian supplier on the phone. The gaps below are 2026 orders of magnitude quoted on the course page, depending on sector and city.
| Job in Dakar | Indicative gap with basic English | Typical situation |
|---|---|---|
| Receptionist | 20,000 to 50,000 FCFA more a month | Foreign visitors, appointments |
| Shop sales assistant | 20,000 to 50,000 FCFA more a month | English-speaking passing customers |
| Hotel front desk | 20,000 to 50,000 FCFA more a month | Check-in, information |
| Ride-hailing driver | 20,000 to 50,000 FCFA more a month | Passengers from AIBD airport |
| Independent trader | Sales previously lost | Gambians, Ghanaians, Nigerians, tourists |
Mini case study
Learn this skill with Kolonell Academy
Short, practical online courses (taught in French), graded exercises, certificate. Pay with Wave or Orange Money.
Consider a hypothetical learner: Moussa, 31, a ride-hailing driver in Dakar who often picks up passengers at AIBD airport. He has forgotten his high-school English. He invests 25,000 FCFA and 15 minutes a day for four weeks.
Illustrative calculation: if he then gets a driver job with an agency that requires basic English, at the low end of the quoted gap (20,000 FCFA more a month), the course costs a little over one month of difference, about five weeks. With the upper gap of 50,000 FCFA, it would be half a month. This calculation does not describe an achieved result: it only helps compare cost and possible gain.
FAQ
I have not done English since high school. Is it too late?
No. The course starts from the alphabet and explains everything in French. Many adults have buried basics that 15 minutes of daily out-loud practice over 4 weeks helps revive.
Can I really finish in 4 weeks?
The course takes about 8 hours: just under 5 hours of lessons, the exercises and a 90-minute final project. At 15 to 20 minutes a day it fits in four weeks; if you miss days, simply stretch it, access is lifetime.
Is there audio or live classes?
No live classes. Lessons are written, with PDFs, exercises marked online and quizzes, and the course includes audio listening exercises (synthetic voices, slower playback, transcript). Pronunciation is also practised with free native-speaker tools (Cambridge Dictionary, Forvo, YouGlish) and your own phone recordings.
How do I pay and when does access open?
You pay 25,000 FCFA by Wave or Orange Money to +221 77 596 93 33, and access is activated within 24 working hours of payment. It is non-refundable once activated, so try the free module 1 first.
Does the certificate replace TOEIC?
No. You receive a numbered Kolonell Academy certificate, verifiable online (QR code), that you can add to LinkedIn, after passing the quizzes with at least 70 %; your final project must also be approved by a reviewer. It attests a completed course, not an official level like TOEIC or IELTS.
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Take the next step. Enroll in Beginner English: introduce yourself, understand and be understood: 8 h, 25,000 FCFA (38 EUR), Kolonell Academy certificate verifiable online. Pay with Wave or Orange Money. Questions? WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
