Dear Andrea Robinson,
Thank you for supporting an entrepreneur in Togo.
Discussions of Africa seem to inevitably evolve into discussions of
health. Hot button issues such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, and infant
mortality suddenly become unavoidable topics of conversation and often
leave us feeling discouraged and overwhelmed. This fact is no less
relevant when it comes to discussions about Togo. This tiny West African
country sandwiched between Ghana, Benin, and Burkina Faso is home to 6
million people. Thankfully, the HIV/AIDS prevalence hovers around a
relatively low 3% of the population, but bacterial and viral infections
including malaria are widespread. The Togolese face a life expectancy of
just under 60 years and the country rates 42nd in the world for high
infant mortality. It is all too easy to feel enveloped in statistics.
Yet an extraordinary amount of work is being done to keep the Togolese
population healthy. Individuals just like you are taking action, helping
others, and using the profits to support their own families. As a Kiva
Fellow working with Women and Associations for Gain both Economic and
Social (WAGES), I had the opportunity to meet some of these inspiring
individuals. The following journal entry will focus on four
extraordinary women, all of whom work as nurses or midwives in the Lomé
area and received Kiva loans from WAGES.
Akou Damali runs a large prenatal and family planning clinic. Born in
Nigeria, Mrs. Damali now works in the Akodésséwa neighbourhood of
Lomé. With the help of her loan officer acting as a translator, we
conducted our interview in a combination of English, French, and Ewe.
When asked how many hours she worked a day, Mrs. Damali laughed and
said, “Twenty-four hours.” In reality, the clinic must always be open to
serve her patients. She used her $1,125 loan to purchase medications,
injections, pills and other products for her clinic. At times, Mrs.
Damali can struggle to deal with sudden declines in her patients’
health. Patients experiencing complications in their pregnancy can fall
ill beyond Mrs. Damali’s care and she is forced to send them to a
hospital. Nevertheless, Mrs. Damali maintains that running a clinic is,
in fact, a very profitable business. As a single mother of three, she is
able to use the profits make ends meet at home and support her own
family.
Edjoè Abiassi works as a midwife and pharmacist in the Hédranawoé
neighbourhood just north of Mrs. Damali’s clinic. Mrs. Abiassi takes
pride in her work. She enjoys helping the sick and finds joy in saving
the lives of mothers and babies. In addition to a personal sense of
satisfaction, the profits from her business help Mrs. Abiassi support
her four children. She used her $650 loan to purchase medications for
her business, and she has used the profits to help cover school fees and
food costs for her children.
Given the difficult nature of her work, Mrs. Abiassi can face extremely
trying situations. Currently, she is facing a mass expiration of stock
and has been forced to either dispose of some of her medications or send
them back to the manufacturer. Like Mrs. Damali, Mrs. Abiassi must
overcome complications in her patients’ pregnancy or during childbirth.
At times, the outcome can be disheartening. As a result, Mrs. Abiassi
plans on building a small clinic in the future. There, she will be able
to better care for her patients and perform deliveries in a clean and
comfortable environment.
Afi Maimounatou Kouloungou and Anoko Lawson run two sister clinics a few
blocks apart in the Hédzranawoé district of Lomé. Both clinics offer
services such as prenatal care and family planning as well as general
services for the ill. These hardworking women must be available
twenty-four hours each day in order to care for their patients. Although
exhausting, Mrs. Kouloungou maintains that it is worth the work for the
sake of “aider l’humanité,” helping humanity. Both women used their
individual $625 and $975 loans to purchase medications, beds, and other
supplies needed to better serve their patients’ needs.
It can be difficult to operate a clinic, but Mrs. Lawson has seen the
benefits. She divides the profits from her loan in two, using one part
to reinvest in her business and putting the remainder into savings. She
says that her loan has had a huge positive impact on her family. After
the elections, Mrs. Lawson hopes to receive another WAGES loan to
purchase land and build a house. Mrs. Kouloungou’s family has also
benefited from her loan. She says that this loan from WAGES has “changé
la vie.” It has changed her life and everyone in her family is very
happy. In the future, Mrs. Kouloungou would also like to take out
another loan with WAGES in order to purchase land and build a house.
The loan officer with whom I was working commented that this seemed to
be a common long term plan among WAGES’ female entrepreneurs. Mrs.
Lawson laughed and said that women cannot just wait for their husbands
to provide for them. Instead, they must fend for themselves. She stated
wisely that sometimes, “Il faut être maman et papa au meme temps.” You
have to be mother and father at the same time. Evidently, this line of
work has significant challenges. In addition to the difficulties shared
with Mrs. Damali and Mrs. Abiassi, Mrs. Lawson mentioned the hardship of
working such long hours. Mrs. Kouloungou also addressed a specific
situation where patients will require her services, but cannot pay for
her care. This puts her in an extremely difficult position. Despite the
obstacles they face on a daily basis, all four of these women remain
committed to their work and their patients.
All of these dedicated women are thankful for their loans. They ask that
Kiva lenders continue to support WAGES so that they may continue to
benefit from WAGES loans. As an institution, WAGES also does its part to
keep the community healthy. WAGES goes beyond providing financial
services to offer health seminars focusing on HIV/AIDS prevention and
malaria treatment. Mrs. Damali, Mrs. Abiassi, Mrs. Lawson, and Mrs.
Kouloungou strive for this goal independently and are collectively
supported by an institution dedicated to the same cause. As a result,
the extended WAGES community is working to ensure the ongoing health of
their fellow citizens. Empowerment is not possible without health and
these four women are lifting themselves out of poverty by helping others
do the same.
On behalf of these four women, WAGES, and Kiva, I would like to thank
you for ongoing commitment to lending, empowerment, and poverty
alleviation.
Lend to a WAGES entrepreneur here.
Show your support for WAGES by joining the lending team.
Best Wishes,
Taylor Akin
Kiva Fellow
Kiva very much appreciates your responses online. You can read and
respond to this journal online at:
Rafatou Tchedre:
http://www.kiva.org/lend/180511/comment?ent=243408&_te=j
