Togo is a small tropical country in sub-Saharan West Africa. Once a major hub for slave trade, Togo’s central economic activities are now focused on agriculture, mining and commercial trade.
According to the 2010 UN projections, over 7.1 million people call Togo home and this number is growing at a rate of 2.7% per year. This growing population means a growing need for access to safe water, improved sanitation and hygiene education – the basic building blocks for health, education and economic growth.
In recent years Togo has endured political turmoil, setbacks from rising global food and fuel prices and damaged crops from flooding; as a result, hunger and poverty remain huge challenges for the small coastal country.
TESTIMONIES FROM LOCAL CHURCHES IN TOGO
PART I
DALIME TRUST BANK, PARTNER OF MEDIC-TOGO, Assemblies of God Temple
TESTIMONY FROM PASTOR GNATCHIGLO ANDRE
MAI 2014
It’s since 2006 that my church gets in partnership with MEDIC TOGO. And since this moment it’s about 200 people that benefit from the economic and training program. Among them women are the majority followed by men and young people and some are paganism and others Muslims.
Our goal in this partnership with MEDIC TOGO is to reduce and if it’s possible push out poverty from the local church and around it and use this opportunity to share the Gospel to non-Christians.
This program changed many people life and particularly the church and in different domains:
I-DOMAIN of Salvation
Apart from the economic program in the local churches and the micro loan, MEDIC-TOGO focuses its action also on souls’ salvation trough an evangelism program in cooperation with the local churches that benefit from economic program.
In our local church, this program also brings souls to Jesus and a whole families and couples were converted. But what rejoices us more is when we saw Muslims came to our prayers meetings an attended church service.
II-DOMAIN of TRAINING
The quality of training that were given before lend the money to the beneficiaries, illuminate and give light, that by ignorance were turning around in poverty without finding a sustainable way to come out. But after the seminary they were aware to manage well their trade, shops and work place with efficiency and effectiveness and for good results. Today, some became financially autonomous and are helping others.
III-DOMAIN of BUSINESS
MEDIC-TOGO changed the dark history of many people in the business domains as:
1-trade success, 2-shops and work places renewing 3-possession of transport means (motor bikes) to facilitate their businesses’ progress.
Two motor bikes in the picture
All these impact positively Dalimé trust bank’s members lives : we have women, men and young people that in the pas were in charge of the church and others persons and that are today autonomous and also take care of others.
-Local pastor’s motor bike
IV-IMPACTS ON THE CHURCH
The partnerships with MEDIC TOGO’s impacts are real and concrete. We can note:
1-families’ charges are take care Through this program in our local church, widows, orphans and needy people living with difficulties, find their families’ charges reduced as they’re able to support them through their businesses.
2-local church members increased The number of the church members increased and move forward day by day because of the MEDIC TOGO’s economic program
And through the prayer meetings, a non-Christian women that was waiting for a child thirteen years now gave birth after being accepted as the Dalimé trust bank member.
MEDIC-TOGO made many disciples and some leave for other friend local churches near us.
3-Church materials: Our local church met a great, wonderful and quickly transformation. The partnership changed our buildings :
-the traditional building
This traditional building with raw materials and in which we began worships was rebuilt with sustainable materials.
The new worship building
-offices
Our local church built in 2013 its new offices what was not the same many years ago, even the pastor didn’t have his office but now all the church departments got theirs. People in the past use to moke about that situation, but today this local church became a reference to others and also profit from this partnership with MEDIC TOGO through us, this explains MEDIC TOGO’ expansion in the zone.
Administrative building/bloc
-musical instruments
Through this economical partnership with MEDIC-TOGO the local trust bank of Dalimé and through its faithfulness bought musical instruments to the church in august 2011 at the moment we’re using old ones. (photo below).
musical instruments bought to the church by Dalimé trust bank
MEDIC TOGO through the trust bank contributed at 90% of the total amount of the local pastor’s motor bike.
We cannot forget the honor MEDIC INTERNATIONAL made towards our local trust bank when we’re selected as the most faithful trust bank of year 2011.
V-REQUESTS
We want to share these requests with you.
1-Please pray for peace in Togo.
2-We would also wish you remember old widows, orphans and needy children that parents are not assuming their responsibility for their education and apprenticeship.
VI-Conclusion
From 2006 to 2014, the majority of our beneficiaries are seriously improve in their businesses and are satisfied.
Everywhere this trust bank is welcome and people continue to ask for membership.
Seeing all this in as so little moment, we can say with confidence that: “with MEDIC TOGO, it’s a real partnerships, faithfulness and satisfaction of the needs”.
We use this opportunity to thank our American partners and all the leaders. Thanks also to MEDIC-TOGO and its leaders for their initiative to boost out poverty among the Christ body in Togo and worldwide.
We pray that God you get opened doors for this initiative expansion in Togo, Africa and the world.
Yours,
Pastor GNATCHIGLO André, Assemblies of God – Agoè Dalimé Lomé – Togo
Contact: 90 38 71 52
2ND TESTIMONY FROM PASTOR SEGNEKPO, ASSEMBLIES OF GOD TOGOME
This testimony was giving by Rev. SENYEKPO Yao, Assemblies of God Temple Jerusalem from ASSIKO – Lomé, Togo
Testimonies about MEDIC TOGO’ goodness’s to my local church and its members
I heard about MEDIC TOGO from one of our pastors that was involved in partnership with MEDIC TOGO in 2010. I also quickly ask for it and my demand was accepted. After six sessions of training, MEDIC TOGO gave the first loan to my church members. 45 members received their loan and this is their transformation beginning. All of them continue their income generation activities today. This also affected the non-Christians who became Christians and our local church members. The trust bank asked for three days evangelism and film projection, which was a great success with many souls conversion.
Through MEDIC TOGO support the church face changed. We were able to build the church office.
Sincerely we thanks God for MEDIC TOGO’s programs and the way it decided to accompany local churches for a wholistic development. We pray that the lord continue to spray His favors and grace upon them and their sponsors so that their vision become wide and wide to reach even all the rural areas.
Note: please note that Pastor SENYEKPO was the former pastor of the Assemblies of God Church at ASSIKO (and this testimony as about this former local church), but last November he was transferred to another local church called ‘’TOGOME’’, where MEDIC TOGO continued to work together with widows and women living in serious poverty.
From Pastor SENYEKPO Yao, Assemblies of God, Togomè – Lomé, Togo
3RD TESTIMONY: JEHOVAH SHALOM TRUST BANK FROM ASSEMBLIES OF GOD DJAGBLE II
This picture also is the car that the local trust bank named ‘’JEHOVAH SHALOM’’ from the Assemblies of God of Djagblé, bought to their church. In the middle the president of MEDIC TOGO, Mrs. Lilas KRUEGER, and at her left the local pastor, Mr. BAMEZON.
Date: Mai 2014
Collected by : Kossivi ATIVI, MEDIC TOGO’s Executive Director