GRATIA is the name of the new Medico-Social Center which opened its doors in the village of KLEME located in the canton of AFLAO-SAGBADO. The opening ceremony was held on Thursday 15 December in that center, in the presence of the representative of the Prefectural Health Director, the representative of the canton of AFLAO-SAGBADO, the representative of the village chief of KLEME , Representatives of other NGOs, members of the Board of Directors of CREDI, CREDI staff and the people of KLEME and its surroundings.

Opened from today, the GRATIA Medico-Social Center includes 02 consultation rooms, 01 care rooms, 02 hospital rooms, 01 guard room, 01 laboratory, 01 pharmacy, 01 maternity center, which includes 01 Prenatal consultation room (CPN), 01 childbirth room, 01 consecutive layers and 01 guard room.

“At the maternity clinic we will have prenatal consultations, childbirth, weighing of children, vaccination, family planning and many other things,” said MELESUSU, midwife at the GRATIA CMS and responsible for maternity.

The general medical service offers general care, general surgery, nursing care in general (dressings, injections, infusions, etc.).

In their various speeches, the personalities in attendance urged the population to take them to the health center in order to put an end to self-medication. The representative of the village chief of KLEME had not failed to remind the staff of the GRATIA CMS to show patience of indulgence and kindness towards the patients who would attend the center.

The Chairman of the Board of Directors of CREDI asked the public to trust CREDI, which has a long experience in setting up and managing a health center and has chosen to establish the GRATIA CMS at KLEME-AGOKPANOU after long studies and in view of the remoteness of the health centers in the area.

“I was impressed when I arrived, the setting, the context and the geographic location prove that it is a relevant project that really meets the needs of the population. After the visit, even though I was not a specialist, I find the quality of the work impressive, “said M AGBANYO Head of BK Consult, a consultancy and support service for Bread for the World in Togo.

Built by the NGO CREDI with the support of “Brot für die Welt” (Bread for the World – Protestant Development Service), CMS GRATIA is part of CREDI’s mission “to work for sustainable development Of populations living in rural and urban areas in Togo through actions in support of food security and access to basic health services “.

It should be remembered that the GRATIA CMS is the fourth health center set up by CREDI after those of ATAHONOU, AFIDENYIGBA and SAGADA in the prefecture of Vo.

The Executive Director of CREDI handing over a kit of veterinary products to a beneficiary
On January 19, 2016, CREDI’s partner breeders in the Avé and Vo prefectures engaged in the microcredit livestock project signed the livestock loans grant documents in the presence of the head of the CREDI branch. Vo M. MELESUSU Didier and the Executive Director of CREDI M. AGBANAGLO Lucas, on CREDI in Vo.

Microcredit for livestock is a project initiated by CREDI with the financial support of ZEBUNET, which consists of granting to the small breeders of the family loans refundable in two years. These loans enable them to enlarge their herd by acquiring new heads, to carry out a semi-annual supply of feed for the animals and to improve the livestock environment and, on the other hand, to cope to veterinary care.

A week after the launch of the project and the capacity-building workshop of the beneficiary farmers, the latter presented themselves on the CREDI in Vogan for the signature of the various loan documents and the collection of the sums agreed for each of them.
CREDI officials at the ceremony recalled the refund deadline in three modalities at eight (08) month intervals.

Each beneficiary also received a kit of veterinary products corresponding to the amount of the endowment of its loan. Vaccines against avian plague and plague of small ruminants remain available on CREDI’s office for reasons of conservation of these sensitive products.
“The technical team of CREDI will administer the vaccine to the subjects set up during the follow-up after the purchase of the animals,” recalled MELESUSU Didier, head of the office of VO.

Partial view of the pupils of the Primary School of Dzogbépimé during the transplanting of teak seedlings into pots.

On 5 and 8 April 2016, pupils from the Primary School of the village of Dzogbépimé in Avé prefecture were introduced to the techniques of setting up nursery, picketing and teak transplantation in their school in order to get them to acquire the aforementioned basic techniques.

The prefecture of Avé (about 50km north-west of Lomé) is characterized by a grassy savannah, due to an abusive exploitation of the vegetation and a rapidly growing population.
CREDI, in its action for the management of the environment and natural resources, works to reconstitute and protect the vegetation cover in its zones of intervention that are the maritime regions and plateaus. In order to accomplish its task, it has accompanied producers who want to do reforestation and communities for several years.

To ensure that the practice is perpetuated, CREDI also includes schools in its approach by introducing students to practice. This strategy aims to teach them at the primary school level the importance of trees in the maintenance of life and to train them in protecting vegetation and the environment.

Thus, the students of the Dzogbépimé Public Primary School, assisted by the technical team of CREDI and the teachers, were trained to set up a plank nursery, picketing and teak transplantation.

Six weeks after the establishment of the nursery, the students returned to the techniques of its establishment before starting the transplanting of teak seedlings into plastic pots.
The teak potted plants thus formed will be watered by these students for three (03) to four (04) weeks before transplanting into the reforestation reserve set up for reforestation. They have by the way reviewed the rules to follow when transplanting so that everyone remembers the method again before the day of transplantation.

CREDI in its support to reforestation in schools initiated one hundred and fifty-five (155) students in four (04) schools in Avé prefecture to teak nursery and transplantation techniques.
However, the remoteness of the water points of certain schools sometimes impedes the regular watering of the boards. This reduces the seed germination rate and thus the number of plants planted.

Integrated Disaster and Land Management: A Workshop for Environmental Professionals

As part of the implementation of the Integrated Disaster Management and Land Management (IWRM) project, a training workshop for civil society and government officials on Sustainable Land Management , Disaster Risk Management and Adaptation to Climate Change from 25 to 30 April 2016 at the National Institute of Agricultural Training (INFA) in Tové in the plateaux region.

The training was attended by some 30 participants from the Institutes of Technical Advice and Support (ICAT), non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working in the field of agriculture or environmental protection, agricultural entrepreneurs and of producers from cooperatives.

Eight modules were developed during these 06 days:

• introduction to sustainable land management, disaster risk management and climate change,
• agronomic practices,
• the physical arrangements,
• biological or plant practices,
• techniques for the production of forest seedlings,
• zootechnical practices,
• combined practices,
• other good practices.

The various modules addressed included a clear understanding of the fundamentals and issues of sustainable land management (SLM), disaster risk management (DRM) and adaptation to climate change (CC), exchanges on agronomic practices and practical exercises on a technique: composting, exchanges on techniques and stages of creation of a nursery and production of seedlings.
The CREDI technicians present at the workshop have, on their return, organized a restitution session in order to share with the other agents of the field the different techniques learned.
Organized for technicians working in the field of agriculture and environmental protection, this workshop is an opportunity for professionals in the field to share experience and renew knowledge.

Presentation of the project Microcredit livestock by the head of the CREDI-Vo office

The Center for Action Research for the Environment and Integrated Development (CREDI) launched on Wednesday 13 January 2016 in the large conference room of the Social Action Center of Vogan a new project called “microcredit livestock” of a duration of two years. The ceremony was opened by the welcome speech of the Executive Director of CREDI, Mr Lucas AGBANAGLO.

The ceremony was presided over by Mr LEGUEDE Kokou, Prefect of Vo, who launched the new project with a speech. A fifty of breeders from the prefectures of Vo and Avé also attended the ceremony.
Togo is a territory that is cultivated to 25% of the available land and whose agriculture largely ensures the food security of the inhabitants. Livestock production is declining or rather stagnant in Togo as well as in other countries of the subregion, causing a real problem in terms of meat supply and food security.

It is therefore important to promote livestock farming in order to increase the availability of meat products, which will improve the living conditions of the populations. One situation shows a lack of training and popularization of new breeding techniques, with about 99% of existing breeders practicing traditional breeding and about 16% administering veterinary care and only 18% vaccinating their animals. It is therefore necessary to improve Togolese breeding.

For the last fifteen years, CREDI has been working in the Maritime and Plateau regions of Togo to improve the traditional livestock breeding through veterinary care (vaccination of poultry and small ruminants), consulting support, placing in close proximity to veterinary products.
CREDI therefore initiated, with the financial support of ZEBUNET, an action of granting microcredit to the breeders to better accompany them.

ZEBUNET is a French association whose concept of microcredit has already proved its worth in several developing countries like Madagascar, Vietnam and Burkina Faso where the association intervenes.

The microcredit farming initiated by CREDI in the prefectures of Vo and de l’Avé aims to “increase the margin of profit of the accompanied breeders by promoting the small family breeding of pig, goat, sheep and poultry all In making profitable the farms of breeding of the families “. This project consists of granting to the small livestock breeders micro-credits that will be refunded within two (02) years.

The credit granted is divided into two parts: 1- A first part of the credit must allow each breeder to acquire animals (male and female), to obtain feed for the animals for a period of six (6) months and Improve their shelter and livestock environment. 2-A second part of the loan will be used for veterinary care and maintenance of animals.

Some fifty breeders from the Vo and Avé prefectures will benefit from this microcredit support operation, which is in its first year of implementation in the above-mentioned localities.
CREDI will accompany the breeders by giving them technical support. It will also follow-up periodically the evolution of the activities throughout the project in order to check the respect of the good practices of breeding in order to obtain the expected results.

The beneficiaries of the prefecture of Avé and Vo have appreciated the launching ceremony of the project and expressed their gratitude for the implementation of the new project in these terms:
“CREDI has been accompanying us for several years by vaccinating our animals (chickens, goats, sheep), providing us with veterinary care and giving us advice for their maintenance.

We know that this new project will give us more support because we will be able, thanks to the credits granted, to increase the number of our animals and to practice our breeding otherwise “.

Ordinary General Assembly of the MAWUSSI cooperative of Howuivé (prefecture of the Avé) (Welcoming remarks of the president)

In the first fortnight of March 2016, the cooperatives KEKELI and MAWUSSI respectively of the villages of Awatomé and Howuivé of the prefecture of Avé (south-west of Togo) organized their Ordinary General Assemblies (AGO ). The various cooperative officials and their respective members were present to take stock of the 2015 exercise and to plan the activities and budget for 2016.

CREDI through its mission “to work for the sustainable development of populations living in rural and urban areas in Togo through actions in support of food security and access to basic health services”, initiated with the ” Financial support for “Brot für die Welt” -Pain for the World- a grassroots support program. This program, entitled “Support Program for the Development of Sustainable Agriculture and Community Health in the Prefectures of the Avé, Gulf and Vo”, whose first component is support for sustainable family farming, Aims to “increase the monetary income of producers (farmers as livestock farmers) and agricultural cooperatives in the prefectures of Vo and Avé on the one hand and on the other hand to reforest school and family plots”.

It is therefore within the framework of the implementation of this program that CREDI accompanies:

• cooperatives and their members from their organization to the marketing of agricultural products or processing products;
• breeders in improving their husbandry practices;
• producers and schools wishing to reforest.

Thus, the various cooperatives that have been set up meet periodically to plan their future activities and take stock of past periods.
To this end, the KEKELI and MAWUSSI cooperatives of the Avé prefecture met for their AGO in March 2016 in order to take stock of the 2015 financial year on the one hand and, on the other hand, Adopt the action plan and budget for the year.

It is said that all planned activities for the financial year 2015 have been carried out both at the level of the KEKELI cooperative and the MAWUSSI cooperative.
It was also found that monetary income from the implementation of activities increased by 10% and 13% respectively compared to those obtained in 2014.

The action plans drawn up on behalf of the year 2016 were adopted by all the members of each of these cooperatives. However, some difficulties noted during the execution of the activities were highlighted. These include the low level of education of the members of the management committees, which makes the various cooperatives dependent on support structures in the preparation and presentation of their balance sheets and annual action plans.

Ordinary General Assemblies took place in a cordial atmosphere between the various members present, and the latter appreciated the different developments noted in the execution of their activities. They plan to strengthen their inputs for better results in the future.

On August 10, the Peasant Organization (PO) “SANS LE PAYSAN” received a set of processing equipment. The reception was preceded by training for its members on the management of social and community facilities.

The objective was to induce the members of the PO to take ownership of the techniques of management of the socio-collective infrastructures or infrastructures.
This donation of processing equipment is consistent with the objective that CREDI has set for the Farmers’ Organizations. In its dynamic development CREDI is committed to bringing the Farmers’ Organizations it accompanies to increase their income by 40%.

“The material received will allow us to go further than the production we made by transforming ourselves the cassava we produce,” said Akuyo, a member of “SANS LE PAYSAN”.
“SANS LE PAYSAN” is a peasant organization made up of about ten members from the village of Agotimé (Préfecture de l’Avé), which produces lilies, cassava and maize.

Training on Soil Regeneration with Legumes