Help us bring much-needed services to Togo, Africa

Africa Forward Initiative is building a 50-bed clinic and health-education center in Koumea, located in the northern region of Togo, to bring much-needed services to potentially 3 million people who are living in an area that is lacking in essential health-care infrastructure.

Currently, the only hospital in the country is the capital city of Loma on the southern coast, a journey of 100 to 150 miles—by mostly foot or bicycle as very few have access to motor vehicles—for the millions of people living in the rural villages of northern Togo and neighboring regions including Dapaong, Kara, Sokode, and Atakpame.

The clinic will occupy 7,453 square feet, with an additional 2 acres allocated for future expansion, potentially construction of a teaching hospital. Plans call for this clinic to evolve into a hub for training nurses, providing facilities for activities such as vaccination campaigns and essential health training, including CPR. It will also serve as a center for offering guidance on maintaining good health practices.

The clinic will offer a range of vital medical services, including:

General medicine
Maternity services
Mini-emergency care
Laboratory facilities
Gynecology and Physiotherapy
Internal pharmacy
X-ray room

The clinic will have an average bed capacity of 50 across all departments, with an average daily consultation rate exceeding 80.

This project is a significant endeavor, but many hands are making it possible. Land for the clinic was gifted by the chief of the village of Koumea, and architectural designs for the clinic were donated to Africa Forward Initiative by an organization partner. Africa Forward Initiative jump-started the project by providing funds to pay a contractor to oversee construction. Community members have volunteered their labor and are working together to complete the actual construction, under the contractor’s supervision.

Phase 2: Underway!

Workers and volunteers continue to work on Phase 2 of the clinic construction, which consists of building the walls and installing the electrical and plumbing systems. Community volunteers worked under contractor’s supervision and instruction to make the concrete blocks earlier this year, and now they are busy using those blocks to build the clinic walls. Phase 2 is just under a third of the way through to completion.

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Phase 1: complete!

We are excited to announce that Phase 1 of Africa Forward Initiative’s clinic project is finished! This phase included preparing the site and laying the foundation for the 50-bed clinic, which will serve potentially 3 million people in the northern, rural regions of Togo who currently have no access to basic medical services.

The work was completed within budget and in about a year’s time—quicker than anticipated—thanks to the many helping hands from volunteers of all ages. These men, women, and even children—all of whom will benefit from the clinic’s services—grabbed shovels, pushed wheelbarrows, poured concrete, and performed other tasks as needed under the watchful eye of a professional building contractor.

This ambitious community project got underway in early 2022, when the Koumea’s village chief donated a parcel of land for the project. Architectural plans for the clinic were donated to Africa Forward Initiative by an organization partner, and a building contractor was secured from Togo’s capital city of Lome.

Phase 2, which includes building the walls and installing the plumbing system, is well underway.