Supporting HALI students in Togo

Education is essential to the development of communities and countries. Unfortunately, not everyone has the chance to access quality education around the world, and that is true in Togo too.

There are various impediments, including the lack of financial resources and the lack of appropriate information about available opportunities. Students from underprivileged areas of our communities frequently drop classes while others major in fields unrelated to their interest due to the lack of financial resources or lack of viable majors at their home universities.

I decided to found EDULCOD-Togo (Education, Leadership and Community Development in Togo) after attending the International Association for College Admission Counselling (IACAC) Conference in 2017 as one of the scholars.

After meeting and learning from other counsellors from all around the world, and having constructive conversations with admission representatives, I decided it was a good idea to design a programme that would benefit a variety of high-achieving, low-income (HALI) students in Togo.

The goal of EDULCOD-Togo was to better serve students who want to further their education while also making a difference in their communities. 

Our programmes

At EDULCOD-Togo, we offer the following programmes to students: counselling and career guidance programme, English language programme, girls empowerment programme, and the STEM programme. 

Programmes for students and their impact

EDULCOD-Togo has changed the lives of many students in Togo, particularly in northern Togo, where access to information about university applications and scholarships options is very limited.

Since its formal inception in 2017, EDULCOD-Togo has supported and created access to higher education by securing full scholarships for 20 students. These students gained admission to universities in the US, South Korea, India, Hong Kong, Canada, UK, Ghana, Kenya and Rwanda.

Furthermore, eight of our scholars were selected to attend the Yale Young African Scholars Programmes in Ghana, Rwanda, Kenya and Zimbabwe, where they learned about leadership and the university application process.

Two other scholars attended the Yale Young Global Scholars Programme in the US where they had the opportunity to interact with their peers, learn from one another and share about their culture.

We are thrilled that four of our scholars were selected to attend the academy for the talented in STEM organised by the University of Hong Kong. Most of these students are the first Togolese to join these universities, institutions and programmes.

EDULCOD-Togo successfully organised the first boot camp of its kind in northern Togo, bringing together 100 high school students from various communities, educators and three counsellors who came from Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan to support the programme. This workshop taught participants about the university admissions process, application essay writing, and the possibilities open to them.

Another achievement we are proud of is the organisation of the girls’ summit in northern Togo, where girls’ access to school remains a significant barrier. The summit brought together 50 female students from three locations. They gathered to learn from women leaders about ways to develop leadership abilities, reproductive health rights and academic success.

To provide access for girls in our community, EDULCOD-Togo has established the AGILE Center (Adolescent Girls Leadership and Empowerment Center), a free space for girls, with the support of Naledi Foundation. This is a free study facility where girls from underprivileged families can access resources and remedial classes, receive counselling and career guidance and participate in multiple training programmes. Each year, the centre admits 150 girls.

An International ACAC opportunity grant has allowed EDULCOD-Togo to train more than 500 educators on how to write letters of recommendation and how to assist students through their university search and application.

Every year, we provide university application information to about 250 students and work closely with 25 students, 12 of whom are our scholars. 

Challenges

Counselling and guiding students in communities like mine in northern Togo is a difficult undertaking. At first, it was difficult for students to walk long distances to a cybercafe, where they would have to spend their money for internet access to login to their email account and begin their university applications.

Often the time allocated to them is insufficient to complete the work they want to undertake. Not everyone can walk long distances or afford the cost of transportation or internet service.

I used to let students use my laptop and internet data sequentially. This was ineffective and time-consuming because it takes a lot of time for a student to complete their application because they are unfamiliar with typing swiftly.

To provide additional possibilities to outstanding kids who did not know how to use a computer, we had to teach them how to use a computer and how to do research online.

Being in a community with limited access to electricity and experiencing frequent power outages has been one of the major issues delaying students’ applications and in some cases preventing them from reaching the deadlines. Access to the information and to application resources is challenging.

Based in a French-speaking country, our students have to train extensively in English and complete the TOEFL or SAT test preparation to be able to apply to university in English. Unfortunately, many lack these resources and do not have laptops to conduct research or to apply to opportunities available to them.

Furthermore, the testing centres are located in the capital, which is about an eight-hour drive from our community. This means that students who have to take the TOEFL test, for example, have to travel, rent a room, buy food and face the local transportation fees and realities.

There are talented students in every area of the country who deserve the opportunity to pursue higher education. However, we do not have financial resources to conduct the outreach properly.

Another difficult task is communicating with parents to ensure that they understand the process and opportunities.

To address some of the challenges, we meet with parents on a regular basis. To address the issue of travelling to take the TOEFL test, we have opted for the Duolingo test instead, which students can complete online and benefit from free vouchers provided by Duolingo.

Also, we often borrow laptops from friends to enable students to take tests or apply. Because students can’t connect to the internet on a regular basis, we advise them to copy the questions from the application forms and complete the work at home before copying the responses on the form, when they are connected. For our meeting spaces, we negotiate with some school administrators to use their places to work with kids in their free time.

I believe other counsellors might have similar challenges and have a desire to launch a programme like this to better serve kids in their areas. Begin small and use the resources available to you, and seek more as the number increases.

It’s not an easy task, and you must have the passion to open doors to help these highly brilliant, underprivileged kids who lack guidance. If you succeed in supporting at least one youngster’s access to quality education, you will have played a key part in their life and as a result you will have contributed to the growth of your community through the transformation that student will undergo through their studies. 

Our future perspectives

To provide more access to high-achieving, low-income students in Togo, we want to build a well-equipped counselling office where students can receive assistance throughout the application process.

We envision building a community-based school where kids are not just memorising facts but where they truly reflect on their communities’ problems to bring solutions. We hope to continue communicating with more counsellors and educators to take our endeavours to the next level. 

Our affiliation

We are a proud member of the HALI Access Network, the International ACAC and the IC3 Movement.