Partnerships the key to work
with children in Togo

LOMÉ, Togo — Togo is home to many thousands of children who daily face the challenges posed by severe poverty. At the very least, such children often miss out on regular schooling. They may find themselves begging for food on the streets if their family is unable to feed them, and some may even be forced into crime to survive. Children like these – children who often feel rejected by mainstream society and may believe that there is very little hope for the future – have become a top priority for the Bible Society of Togo.

The Bible Society is not alone in its determination to reach out to the country’s disadvantaged children, and linking with other agencies with a similar mission has proved particularly effective. As well as providing Selections for local churches to distribute free to street children, the Society has linked with Coalition-Sport Togo, an organisation which promotes sport as a means of achieving physical and emotional well-being (see World Report 381).

Long-term support

Another Christian organisation which works with vulnerable children is the Panafrican Alliance of Christian Women (PACW). Formal collaboration between PACW and the Bible Society, which began on the occasion of the former’s 10th anniversary, is made up of several elements. Initially, PACW will work with local churches to identify places where street children tend to congregate. This will then be followed by the establishment of Bible study groups close to these locations and by follow-up work with children who become Christians, ensuring that they receive long-term support.

Christian schools are also proving a valuable way for the Bible Society to work effectively with children, especially through the use of Faith Comes By Hearing (FCBH) materials. Most schools do not have the necessary equipment to play the FCBH audio cassettes, but this has not deterred enthusiastic head teachers, who have willingly carried their own cassette players to school to ensure that FCBH listening sessions can take place. One head teacher in Lomé, Léopold Ayedji, told Bible Society representatives who visited his school to assist with a listening session that making his own cassette player available was his “personal contribution to put the finishing touch to the Bible Society’s efforts in supplying the New Testament on audio cassette.”

Pay attention

One of Mr Ayedji’s students declared that, since the school had begun the FCBH program, “The teachings of Jesus have come to life in my heart.” He went on to explain, “Each time I listen to the New Testament, it’s as if I’d never heard these messages before. I remember much more than I do when I read by myself.”

Confirming this, Mr Ayedji said, “FCBH is more than just a listening session. The children really pay attention and [because it encourages them to ask questions] it also develops their oral skills.”

Innovative

Another school had started to teach children in a local church because class sizes had become so large. Here, too, staff showed commitment and an innovative spirit as they tackled the problem of actually playing the FCBH cassettes. The church did not have its own cassette player, but a teacher offered the use of a small one which could be linked to the church’s sound system.

So far, more than 20 primary schools associated with various denominations have given very positive feedback about FCBH.

In a somewhat different type of collaborative venture, the Bible Society is also exploiting the potential of drama to convey messages which will touch the lives of children and young people. It has linked with Soleil de Nuit (‘Night Sun’), a group of young actors, to produce a video, Histoire Biblique à travers les contes (‘Biblical history through story-telling’), which will be the first of a series of ventures designed to work through young people to reach out to others of a similar age. Using drama is a particularly appropriate approach in Togo, where many young people like to attend theatrical events.