My time as a volunteer at PDH Togo By Momar Hughes, 155th International Volunteer, 28/11/13 – 08/02/14

I arrived at PDH hoping to learn a lot about life in Togo and how NGOs in developing nations work. I’ve indeed seen and learnt a lot during my 8 weeks here and thoroughly enjoyed myself too!

I’m a 4th year Mechanical/Aeronautical Engineer who lives in Brisbane, Australia. I chose to study Mech/Aero Engineering because I was always interested in sciences and I felt thoroughly guilty about the number of times I’ve been on a plane, so I hoped I could be involved with reducing the environmental impact of flying. Last year I became involved with Engineers Without Borders, a not-for-profit humanitarian engineering organisation, and see humanitarian engineering as something that resonates well with me. This is part of the reason I sought out volunteering at an NGO in a developing nation; to get a feel for the way they work and the people and environments they work in. I’ve been to Africa many times before because my mother is Gambian so I’m no stranger to African life, however I’ve never spent an extended period of time living in Africa, let alone working here.

I’ve been greatly impressed with the work PDH does, it’s vast, varied and deals directly with the local people. During my time here I have participated in several AECs (Accueil, Ecoute, Conseil), which is where we listen to people who turn up at the door asking for help or bringing information, and then later discuss what we can do for them. My sessions have ranged from a lady with HIV asking for help with food and medical fees, to a man asking for help who was in a motorbike accident and has now lost his job and family due to a large wound on his ankle, to people paying off installments of their Microfinance contracts with PDH. I have been on numerous visits to peoples’ homes and schools to bring them school fees and equipment and talk to their teachers about their studies or check up on people who have had medical treatment or babies recently. I met a man who PDH is helping with his medical treatment for a huge wound on his leg and have been with him in to hospital many times for appointments. I have participated in monthly meetings for HIV/AIDS sufferers on topics such as managing finances, personal safety, setting goals etc, at which PDH monitors their weight and state of health and sometimes gives out gifts such as a small sum of money or bag of rice. I’ve been out to a rural clinic for a presentation on sexual health and

contraception, and to a rural orphanage and many times out to PDH’s soon to be finished Agriculture Centre which will take in local youths as apprentices to learn various agricultural techniques. I also collected almost 100 pairs of prescription glass before I came because as somebody who lives life behind lenses, I wanted to help others like me. It’s been fantastic to see that PDH has made contact with a local organisation called Fondation Lumière-Vie-Amour in Avenou that aims to prevent

blindness and optical maladies especially with children, who now can refer patients on to PDH to receive free glasses. We’ve already given out the first of many pairs! These are just a few examples of the cases I have been involved with; there are many more that get dealt with every day. In short, I have definitely achieved my goals of seeing a lot, meeting many people from all different walks of life, and learning a lot about their problems.

So now that my stay has come to an end, I’m reflecting on what all my experiences have truly meant. Togo is a very laid back country; everybody greets one another in the street, it’s common to wait around for a couple of hours to see somebody and compared to its neighbour Ghana, it has only slowly started to adopt aspects of “western” lifestyle (which I think is a good thing!). Fortunately Togo is not facing problems with safety, political or religious fighting, access to facilities or widespread disease; the main problem I have noticed here is simply cost of living. Much of the population gets by working a little stall in the market or on their street, and while this may provide enough for their food and housing, when an unexpected medical situation arises, which may be fairly minor, they do not have the savings to cope. Too often these situations are just ignored and become progressively worse (and more costly to amend), and with the large families that are common in Togo, these situations can be disastrous when more than one person needs help (although thankfully the younger generation is definitely aware of the effects of a large family and don’t want to replicate the family of 8 that they come from). There are of course also those who do not make enough to provide for their food and housing and face the terrible hardships of hunger and losing homes, partners and children. Organisations like PDH are essential for Togo because often people don’t know where to go to for help and often don’t need much to make a big difference. I think the system of a small local NGO is working well for PDH; it’s very intimate with the visits to homes etc so the staff have the chance to get to know many of the beneficiaries well, and it hasn’t lost its vision which can happen in the bureaucracy of large organisations. I feel that for the future all they really need is just the funds to keep giving. I am very grateful for having been welcomed by everyone at PDH and all the opportunities I’ve had during my stay here, and I will help them continue their great work in the future.