Togo, Western Africa, 

June / July 2009

Africa is known as the “land of the forgotten billion”…forgotten for so many reasons – in some areas they are limited with natural resources and they don’t produce very many profitable, exportable goods.  So it was simple to see the need for computers, and I wanted to do something that could make a difference.  Prior to my departure, a great deal of planning and research took place so that we could achieve the goals I had, the local sponsors and helpers had could all be accomplished.  This would be my first time in Africa and I was going in blindly and had no idea what to expect. 

We had selected a small village approximately 25 miles north east of Togo’s capital Lome called Vo Pedakondji.  The name of the village means the home of the Peda tribe. This small, rural village was to be the site of the first Togo Internet Village Cyber Café  (TIV).  The village is located in the Vogan region of Togo, and while it is incredibly rural, it is within relatively easy travel of the capital.  There are no computers in any of the schools in the region of Vogan, which has a population of about 400,000.  A large majority of the population relies on subsistence agriculture for labor, and the area is very poor.  Vo Pedakondji has three schools – a primary, middle and high school – with a population of 1,800 people.  Electricity is available in some homes, but it is not very reliable.

From the initial discussions, the local community sponsors had shown incredible enthusiasm for the concept and had prepared the groundwork which included finding a suitable site and coordinating the necessary local resources. I was anxious about pulling off this project in rural Western Africa, but I knew that I had very supportive sponsors who had proven they could get stuff done in this local environment and were entirely dependable.

The practical issues of getting this project off the ground are apparent when you arrive in Lome.  Even in the capital city, much of the infrastructure seems in disrepair, the most obvious being the roads, many of which are no more than dirt tracks; even in the middle of the city. What is also striking though is the color and bustle of an African city as a multitude of motor bikes try to navigate around huge pot holes and seemingly chaotic traffic. The women and young girls wrap themselves in bright colorful robes and carry everything on their heads they hope to sell which include; pots, pans, bananas, and drinks. The street vendors line every inch of the sidewalks selling replica soccer jerseys and every other imaginable ware. Everyone seems to be hardworking, trading and hustling to make a living. But you are also struck by the poverty and squalor as you peer past the main thoroughfares into the side streets and see their living conditions.

I met up with David and Jean-Pierre, who coordinated the project in Togo, David acted as my guide and translator throughout the whole trip. (My local Ewe dialect is nonexistent!). They also organized the computer classes with the local schools ahead of time so when we arrived in Vo Pedakondji we could begin teaching the next day.

After a short stay in Lome, the trip out to the village was more challenging than I had expected. The road is basically just a dirt track with even larger potholes then I saw in Lome. The road to the village was also used by women and children bringing their farmed produce to local markets, while their husbands work the small plots of land, growing corn and maize. I was told that the farmers like to have a lot of children so they can help from a very early age. These women and girls carry huge loads of items on their heads and walk for many miles to sell the goods and to collect food and water.

The computer equipment was already in the village prior to my arrival, and transporting them on the poor road system must have been a burden. The rainy season was at its height during my visit, so I saw a lot of rain. The average temperature was pretty hot at around 85 degrees with 100 percent humidity, which made it feel a lot warmer. The constant rain destroys the roads, and after every rain the road conditions got noticeably worse.

We finally arrived in the village after about a 50 minute drive and when I got there I walked around. I saw small concrete and corrugated iron homes and more traditional thatched type huts gathered around a few dirt tracks. Children were playing all over these tracks and were fascinated by seeing a white person, some for the first time. I was told that this village is luckier than most because it has doctors, electricity, a new church, a school building, which have been built by local benefactors.  

The permanent site for the Cyber Café is not scheduled to be completed until early August, but the community benefactors had a temporary building rented so we could install the computers and begin training the teachers and the children.

From the money we raised through donations to date, we were able to purchase 13 computers and associated printers. The first day I was in the village, we installed the computers in the temporary building that is located in the center of the village. The main challenge with the Cyber Café was insuring that we had a clean and flowing supply of electricity that had surge protection due to the unpredictable electricity. We installed 10 of the computers in the temporary Cyber Cafe and eventually gave the other three to each of the local schools (Primary, Middle and High). They had no computers, and desperately needed them for administration, and we believed they could be used to practice the things I taught the teachers after I left Togo.

The children were just finishing their school year while I was in Togo. The kids try to earn money for their school fees which are approximately $15 per year once you get to middle school (The government then takes 40% of the $15 from the school). Due to the subsistence nature of farming and the multiple children many families have, it is difficult for children’s tuition fees to be met by each child’s family. The children are forced to find ways to make money, and a few jobs the older kids do include driving motorcycle taxis (which is more common in Lome) and working on building sites, while the women sell the crops and goods at markets.

The teachers were incredibly enthusiastic and very quick to learn. Teachers from all three local schools and a few others in the surrounding area showed up to learn. It turns out that even in the central regional town of Vogan, some 5km away, none of the schools have any computers. The news of the project had spread quickly throughout the region and everyone was very excited. After ten days of training the teachers, they mastered Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint, and even some Microsoft Excel. Their basic computer skills went from not even knowing how to turn the computer on to being efficient in completing any task I wanted them to in the said applications. Things were going very well, and the teachers and I were very happy but the real test would be with the children.

On the first day of student instruction over 40 children showed up and about half of them had never even seen a computer. Their initial reaction to seeing the computers was priceless. They were extremely excited, and soon were learning to type. I was truthfully struck by how orderly and well behaved they were. The teachers I taught computer lessons to were on hand when we taught the children and there was a distinct level of respect for the teachers from the children. Throughout the course of the week, the children were very enthusiastic, appreciative, and respectful and focused on wanting to learn. The students’ age ranged from seven to nineteen years old, and some students walked three or four miles each day to get the computer lessons.

I was grateful for having David there to help me teach and translate. It would have been almost impossible without him. The teachers also were excellent in helping me teach the children because only a handful of the kids spoke English.

The children were quick to smile, very friendly, and made me feel welcome in the village. I was invited to play soccer with some of the older ones who are completely fanatical about  the game. They play at every opportunity often with bare feet on dirt pitches and with burst soccer balls. They are incredibly fast and skillful and laugh every time any one messes up or falls over.

During my visit I was able to experience much of village life including time out on Lake Togo in the native fishing boats, an audience with the high priestess of Voodoo and encounters with many of the local wildlife.

The time went quickly and the experience and new friendships have been wonderful and rich. It opened up a real appreciation about how these people remain smiling and positive under challenging living conditions and with little in the way of material possessions. To them, happiness is a soccer ball!

It took just over three weeks to get the temporary Cyber Café up and running, train the teachers, and to begin instructing our first group of children. The teaching will continue and we hope all the village children in the region will get a chance to use a computer.

The day before I left, the local community sponsors organized a ceremony in the village. The Governor of the Vogan region, village elders, and headmasters of the schools, teachers and many children attended the ceremony. We presented the three schools with their computers and we had some very touching and wisdom filled speeches from the local dignitaries. Their appreciation was overwhelming, and it felt great to see how excited and thankful they are that people in the developed world are helping their village and their children’s future.

They presented me with a Togo national soccer jersey and a captain’s armband for the school team. After we had one last game of soccer and we said our extended goodbyes, we left before nightfall so we could navigate the bumpy track back to Lome.

I came away from my month in Togo feeling distinctly like I had received more than I had given. I am convinced that the project has touched a large unmet need in bringing the world of computers and the internet to the village children. I am more determined than ever to continue to raise more money to make a difference in the rural villages of Togo and to continue to reach out to the people living in the land of the “forgotten billion”.