My name is Assibi Wartenberg. I was born in Togo in western Africa and have been living in Berlin for about 11 years. Although I have been living in Germany for a long time, I feel for my country and Africa where my roots are. I love my culture and my native country, which is also expressed by the fact that I spend some time with my family almost every year.
I have been witnessing again and again, especially within my own family, what kinds of differences there are in the quality of life between Africa and Europe. For my roots are in Africa, and it is to Africa that I owe my life and my culture, I can't just be leading a good life in Europe and forget about my people in Togo. I feel that it is every Africans duty to help his or her country as much as possible. That is why, after careful consideration, I made up my mind to help to create in Togo something that will last instead of just sending money there. This came to my mind because after long job orientated efforts I came to learn the profession of a nurse which I love and which demands my engagement.
Soon I'll start a further vocational training ( 1 year ) for ambulatory nursing care.Together with friends and acquaintances I founded the organization ” Deutsch - Togoischer - Freundeskreis e. V. ” ( “German - Togoan circle of friends” ). The objective of the organization is to build an outpatient clinic close to my hometown Dapaong.
Dapaong is situated in the very north of Togo, neighboured by Ghana to the west, Burkina Faso to the north and Benin to the east. It's distance to the capital, Lomé, is about 650 kilometers and it is very difficult to get there from Lomé. The north of Togo is little developed compared to the south and the middle, because the economic power has naturally grown in the populated coastal area and also in the home region of the president, which he has been supporting by all means.
Medical care in Dapaong and espacially in the rural regions is inadequate, It does not even reach the rural population and is not affordable for them. The catchment area of an outpatient clinic in Dapaong, a city of about 60.000 inhabitants, is mainly the rural environment, naturally including the neighbouring regions of Ghana, Burkina Faso and Benin. This amounts to about 400.000 people.
The people suffer from typical tropical diseases like malaria, helminthiasis ( like river blindness ) , illnesses with the symptom of diarrhea and poliomyelitis, hepatitis, AIDS and acute undernutrition. From time to time epidemics like cholera and meningitis emerge. This concerns mainly infants and children, pregnant woman and older people.
At the end of 1996 a large meningitis epidemic emerged, which has appeared every year between March and July.
The rade wind, which is called harmathan here spreads the germs all over the country. There is no annual general preventative vaccination programme, never mind a sufficient amount of medicine being available. Another big problem is the lack of stored blood. If a patient has to undergo major surgery, e.g. after a bad accident, he is often condemned to death, if by chance relatives are not able to provide a compatible blood group. Often diseases are spread hereby.There is no adequate nutrition for an infant whose mother has died from loss of blood after giving birth to it. They will often be handed over to the grandmother for breast-feeding, which she won't be able to do sufficiently.
The volume of investments for this project is DM 900.000,- . The organization isn't able to finance this on it's own, but is dependent on donations and all other kinds of help, like gifts (hospital beds, infusion stands, closets, bedside tables, roentgenology and medical devices, operation tables and lamps, sterilizers etc.) and medicine donations.
As important as the things mentioned above is expert advice for the planning and realisation of this project, as well as later will be the help and engagement of doctors and nurses.
The estate has already been bought, and the workings concerning infrastucture have started. The area has been levelled off, two wells have been dug and the outer wall is under construction. As for the buildings themselves, until now only the blueprint ( shell plans ) exist, the questions of energy supply, internal technical devices of the building, water supply and the planning of the medical areas remain unanswered.
The following plans have yet to be made:
water supply:
use and processing of rain water and the connection to the public suppy
energy supply:
here: emergency power generator and the connection to the grid
hot water supply:
use of solar energy
hygiene measures
filter devices
operation area with adjacent rooms and preparation rooms, including technical instrumentation and - standards
Later a vocational training school for medical personnel and for hospital technicians should be affiliated with the hospital. We invite and ask everybody who is interested to support this project, be it either by the donation of money or, as described above, by giving help and / or advice or by becoming a member of our organization. Recently big conferences of the UNO have again and again become a talking point, as the world women conference in China and , before, the conference on environment in Rio. The non - government organizations were recognized as protagonists of a new approach and they are also the ones expected the most to solve many problems.
This project has been brought into being by an African woman and her friends on their own initiative, to build a hospital in Togo, because the state is not willing and not capable to improve the situation of the people.Help an initiative of an African woman for Africa - this is new and we should support this as much as we can!!!
In Togo there is a lively popular culture, featuring tribal ceremonies and festivals. The Conservatory of Lomé serves to promote traditional folk music. Togo is well known for it's handicrafts, cloth woven with gold thread, and carved fetish figures.
Like many African nations, Togo has a long tradition of storytelling. Legends, sagas and myths contain typical, stylistic elements such as old sayings and riddles. In contrast, little has been done to promote literature in the native languages. Before independence, a few authors wrote in French. More recently, however, some novelists and playwrights have created with their works a regional literature in native languages, notably Ewe and Kabyé.
Among the arts, architecture is supported through a state college in the capitol. An example of colonial architecture is the Cathedral Sacré-Coeur in Lomé.
About Togo
The Republic of Togo in West Africa lies on the Gulf of Guinea north of the Equator, with 51 km of coastline, is no wider than 120 km and stretches 515 km inland, covering an area of 57,000 square kilometres. Togo is bordered on the West by Ghana, on the North by Burkina Faso and on the East by Benin, and has a population of ca. 4 Million. Lagoons featuring high grasses and low trees dot the coastal area. The Togo Mountains extend over the central highlands, while the north is dominated by grasslands and dry, dusty plains. The grasslands constitute the southern extension of the great savannah, where many animals are to be found.
Population
Various peoples make their home in Togo, the Mina and Ouatchi in the south and the Kabre and Gourousi in the north. Relations between the individual groups are at times strained. About half the population are Ewe; they occupy the important administrative posts. Most of the rest of the population are Losso and Volta peoples.
Three-quarters of the rural population are traditional African animists, though one also finds Christians, mostly of the Catholic faith, and small communities of Moslems in the north of the country.
The official language is French, but Ewe, Kabre, and Gur are also spoken. In order to diminish illiteracy, which is over 50%, there are state elementary schools and mission schools, where children can be educated. There is a university in the capitol, Lomé.
Economy
Togo's per capita income is around $310 US and the Gross Domestic Product is eroded by an enormous foreign debt. Togo is thus a developing nation.
Rich phosphate deposits provide the chief source of foreign income. In Lomé, there is an electronics and steel plant, a crude oil refinery and a cement factory, which were all financed through the income raised by phosphate exports in the 1970's, which declined during the '80's because of sinking export value and competition by neighbouring states. Although 60% of Togo's people work in agriculture, food must be imported. Calcium phosphate, cocoa, coffee, cotton, and cement are the main exports. Togo's chief trading partners include the EU, the USA and Japan.
Typical agricultural produce includes maize, yams, manioc, pineapples, bananas, and peanuts. Besides phosphate, Togo is rich in chromites, iron, and bauxite, and other mineral resources. Forest products include various woods and palms, from which palm oil is distilled. Herds of sheep and goats are kept in the highlands.
History
The first Europeans to visit Togo were the Portuguese; slave trade soon followed. From the 18th century onward, French, British and Dutch merchants established trading posts. In the late 19th century, Togo became a German protectorate, extending to the Volta River.
With the outbreak of the First World War, Allied troops occupied the area, and after the end of the war, Togo became a mandate of the League of Nations under British and French admin-istration, and was soon divided between those two powers.
After 1946, Togo became a ward of the United Nations. The western part of Togo, which had been administered by the British, chose by referendum to join neighbouring Ghana. The eastern part under French rule, which is today Togo, voted by popular decision for self- determination and became independent in April, 1960, and joined the UN. Because of strained relations with Ghana, that border has been closed since 1986.
The ” Deutsch Togoischer Freundeskreis e. V. Berlin” is a health care project for Togo in western Africa. Togo is among the poorest of developing nations. Medical aids and prevention for the poor rural population are absolutely inadequate.
Our project is to contribute to the improvement ot the situation especially in northern Togo. We need your help and your trust to achieve our goals, which are ambitious, considering that we are a small private organization! It is also to show, that Africans are willing and able to do their share in the development of their country.
Later the clinic could make it possible for doctors from Europe to work there and to gain experience concerning tropical medicine. The most common diseases are, amongst others, malaria, helminthiasis, poliomeyelitis, meningitis, cholera and river blindness. Some diseases become epidemic during certain seasons, e. g. meningitis during the harmathan ( trade winds ) in spring and during the beginning of the rains. It's a pity that the reactions always come too late. Vaccination campaigns only get started after some have already died, although a prevention strategy could often avoid the worst.
Often there's not enough vaccine; it will be diluted or several persons will be vaccinated with an ampule for one person. Many of the causes of the high infant mortality rate could be avoided; but what is lacking is the will and the ability of the goverments in developing nations to improve health care. We have to work with trust and sincerity and, above all, to strengthen and support the initiative of ones own on the spot. But also here in Germany there's still a lot of work to do in order to be able to continue the project.
What does the planning of a hospital in a developing nation look like today, of course having to be adapted to the local conditions but nevertheless being on a high level?
Help us with your ideas and your interest and of course also with your donation in order to allow these ideas to become reality! The hospital project in Dapaong will also help to diminish unemployment and will create training vacancies. People won't be forced to go to the capital or abroad since they'll be able to earn their living in their own country. Later, 150 people will work on this project. All in all, three hectares of land have been acquired, one of which is planned to be used for the building of the hospital.
Later a nursing school and a school for further education of the nursing personnel are to be affiliated. In the capital, Lomé, a school for hospital technicians already exists, therefore maintance and reparation of the technical devices and installations are guaranteed. The north of Togo borders three neighbouring countries: Ghana to the west, Burkina Faso to the north and Benin to the east, therefore the clinic in Dapaong has a catchment area beyond the frontiers of Togo.
We need donations and gifts of all kinds, that is, also gifts for the building of the hospital, as there are pipes, cables, lamps, items of furniture like beds, closets, tables and chairs, windows, doors, sanitary material like toilets, bath tubs, shower cubicles and wash-basins, building materials like mild steel, tiles, etc..
People here and especially in my home country Togo hope and trust that this project will become reality and give the people there an incentive and hope to take their problems and needs in hand and to help themselves ( together with those people who have a “heart for Africa”! ).
Section 1 name and headquarters The association carries the name “German Association of Friends Togolese It has its headquarters in Berlin and is in the register of associations and thus the addition eV The fiscal year of the association is the calendar year.
Section 2 Purpose
The association pursues exclusively and directly charitable purposes iS section of the “tax purposes beneficiaries” of the tax code. The purpose of the association is the establishment of an outpatient clinic in the city Dapango in Togo / West Africa, the promotion of public health (Section 52 II No. 2 A0) and the promotion of international understanding serve. The purpose of the Statute is particularly through the establishment of the hospital in Dapango / Togo and the supply of medical aid populations with reality.
Following medical areas are covered:
1st First Aid Station
2nd Childbirth and child-station
3rd Dentistry
4th Vaccines and treatment of malaria in particular cases
5th Rescue (ambulance)
and other emergencies occurring, such as fractures, diabetes and others diseases In addition, the hospital in Dapango / Togo also the sale of drugs take over. Should the club receive donations, because the hospital has not yet completed buildings are not needed, they are needy or other public institutions (such as the public hospital in Dapango CHU) donated.
The purpose of the association is to raise funds for the promotion of public health care by other entities or by a public corporation pursuant to Section 58 AO No. 1. Will continue to promote international understanding info booths, information and cultural evenings and, as far as we can, even in Togo.
Section 3of funds
The clinic will be from the “German-Togolese Friends Association” operated. For the construction of the hospital, both of Marianne Strauss Foundation as well as funding protestant church in the form of donations in prospect. After the completion of the hospital is a “sponsor” of the two aforementioned institutions, with an annual grant in the amount yet to be determined. The posting of employees of the two aforementioned institutions is not the intention, so that the operation of the hospital exclusively by the German-Togolese Friends Association incorporated. The hospital in Dapango / Togo will be in conjunction with the Marianne Strauss Foundation and the Protestant Church over sponsorships themselves, since a payment of treatment and drugs used by patients and will be made only for patients who have a Treatment can not afford, said the sponsorships are provided. The association is working selflessly, he does not pursue primarily economic purposes. Funds of the association should only be used for statutory purposes. The members do not receive donations from funds of the association. There must be no person by spending the purpose of the corporation are alien, or by disproportionately high remunerations.
Section 4Membership Club members can be natural persons but also full legal persons are. Young people under the age of 18 require the consent of their parents. Entitled to vote are all full members. About a written request for inclusion is decided by the Board. In case of refusal in writing by the board indicated.
Section 5 termination of membership The membership ends with the death of a member by voluntary withdrawal or loss of legal capacity of the legal person, or exclusion from the association. The voluntary withdrawal is notified in writing to the Board. He is only the end of a calendar year to comply with a notice period of 3 months allowed. A member may, if it violated the association's interests in gross manner has, by decision of the executive from the association be excluded. Before the decision is under notice to the member the opportunity to express their views so to speak. The member may also be excluded if it despite two reminders with the payment of membership fees in arrears, and more than three months have passed. The exclusion is the member notified by registered letter.
Section 6 dues Members of the contributions collected. The fixing of annual contributions (currently at least 60, - per year) made by the Board with a simple majority. Honorary members and youths are exempt from the obligation to contribute.
Section 7bodies of the association Association bodies are the Board and the General Assembly.
Section 8Board The Board within the meaning of Section 26 BGB consists of the chairman, the vice chairman and treasurer. The association will be replaced by two members of the Board represented.
Section 9roles and responsibilities of the Board The Board is responsible for all affairs of the association responsible, if they are not another institution by statute is assigned. Among the tasks include: - Preparation and convening of the Assembly, and preparing the agenda. - Execution of decisions of the General Assembly - Preparation of a possible budget plan, preparation of the annual report, Submission of the annual planning
Section 10of the Election Board The Board will be elected by the members. Board members can only members of the Association. The members of the Board for the period of one year. The Board will remain until a new election in office.
Section 11 board meetings The Board decided in meetings from 1 or 2 Chairman to be convened. The presentation of an agenda is not necessary. The Board has a quorum if at least two of its members are present. The Board will decide by majority vote. When shall have the casting vote of the chairman in his absence the vice-chairman (2nd Chairman)
Section 12Meeting In the Assembly, each member - also an honorary member - one vote. The transfer of the exercise of voting rights to other members is not allowed. The assembly is for the following matters:
1st Election, dismissal and redundancy of the Board.
2nd Resolution on amendments to the Statute and the Association resolution.
3rd Appointment of particularly deserving members to honor members.
4th Other tasks, to the extent that the statutes or under the law is. 5th At least 1 x in the year, an ordinary general assembly held.
It is led by the executive with a deadline of two weeks, indicating the agenda by written invitation convened. The General Assembly has a quorum if it has been duly convened and at least one third of the members present. Is less than one third are present, the assembly time and again to be convened immediately afterward, then it is without regard to the number of members attending.
Section 13 logging
Over the course of the assembly is a protocol to justify the head of the Assembly and secretary is to be signed.
Section 14of auditors The assembly elected for 2 years to check 2 will examine the cash transactions of the association on computational accuracy. The audit does not cover the appropriateness of expenditure approved by the board. A review has at least 1 x in the year to take place. The auditors may not be a board member.
Paragraph 15 of Resolution Association
In the liquidation of the club or the disappearance of his untaxed purpose is the property to a local partner to be determined in Togo, which it exclusively to the health station allowed to use. Decisions on the future use of the assets may only after permission from the Finance Office to be carried out.
With the dissolution of the association only a change of legal consequences or a merger with a club like the other sought, with the immediate prosecution of the former exclusive club purpose by the new entity will continue to ensure, is the association's assets to the new entity over. Is due to dissolution of the association or removal of the legal capacity of the liquidation of the club's assets needed, then at that time in office is the club chairman liquidators, unless the Assembly decides on a duly convened general meeting on the establishment of another liquidator with 3 / 4 Majority of members entitled to vote.
