We are so excited to report that, thanks to your giving, the initial staff housing in Togo has been completed and the health care workers have moved in! There are two buildings…one that is larger with four family apartments with two bedrooms each, and a smaller building with four studio apartments for singles and a central shared kitchen area.
This new housing will serve so many great purposes. First of all, it will allow the workers of the Togo health center to have a safe, comfortable living situation. Where they had been living was approximately 15 minutes away over muddy, dirt roads, without reliable transportation. In addition, they did not have water where they were living...not a lack of running water...but a lack of ANY water as the well serving the area had dried up. So at the end of each work day, the staff had been filling up huge jerry cans with water to use until the next day of work, and this water had to last them for all their cooking, cleaning, and bathing needs. Can you imagine living like this?
The staff is so thankful to be living in the new housing which has private toilets and showers for each individual apartment, with running water powered by a solar water pump, as well as electricity from the same solar power that runs the health center.
In addition to helping our current workers, having this housing will allow us to recruit even more great team members from throughout the country in order to expand the medical work, as adequate housing is such a huge need in Togo.
Even more, the medical care as a whole will also be able to improve greatly as having staff on site will allow the work to expand to 24-7 care, whereas it had been limited to 8am-4pm. And as we all know, illnesses, emergencies, and childbirth don't tend to only occur during regular business hours.
As you can see, this on site housing is a win-win-win! Win for the workers, Win for the community, and Win for the health center. Thank you all for your involvement in work that is such a benefit to so many!