Inclusion makes all the difference
Elysée Nabago is nine years old. He has been attending school in Dapaong, in northern Togo, for three years. He is a cheerful child who spreads his good humour around him. "Everyone knows him at the school, even those in other groups," says the school principal. "His classmates are always happy to play with him. " Now in Year 3, Elysée has a visual impairment and only started school very recently because he had to find a school where the lessons and environment were adapted to his needs.
Elysée's teacher, Yaovi Ahli, makes sure that the boy understands the lessons and transcribes them into Braille, assists him when he needs help and ensures that his classmates lend him a hand. He learned how to develop this level of attention towards Elysée and the other disabled pupils in his class during a training course provided by HI.
"Before, I didn't really include students with disabilities in my lessons, but since this training, I've changed the way I teach my class to provide good conditions for everyone. Everything has changed: Elysée and his classmates are very diligent, and now that I take them into account and HI has provided them with the right tools to study, such as styluses and Braille paper, they feel comfortable and work well. The other children in the class are also benefiting, as they have all learnt Braille so that they can work more independently with Elysée," says Yaovi Ahli, the class teacher.
Elysée receives support from the other pupils, who help him copy, transcribe and revise his lessons. They also accompany him around the school, united by a spirit of genuine camaraderie. "I've been through some very difficult times," says Elysée's mother. "I am the only one who takes care of Elysée, and I cannot afford to buy him supplies or pay for his care. But over the past two years, I have seen him make great progress. He studies every day, speaks well and is growing up. I have faith in him and I am certain that he will succeed."
Itinerant teachers provide support
In northern Togo, disabled students like Elysée also receive support from itinerant teachers. These teachers, trained by HI, travel to regular schools and students' homes to provide support. This is the case for Léocadie Menguiyeb Bomboma, a travelling teacher in Cinkassé who specialises in supporting deaf and hard-of-hearing pupils and pupils with intellectual disabilities. "Here, children with disabilities didn't go to school. They were left at home, sometimes locked up by parents who were ashamed of them. It hurt me so much... So the work we are doing is very timely," explains the woman who now supervises 26 students.
"We have undergone training in inclusive education, sign language and Braille, and intellectual disabilities. Every day, I go to three schools: when I arrive in class, I sit next to the child to help them, signing the lesson or helping them copy it down. I also help teachers who have not been trained in inclusive education, as well as other children who may have learning difficulties in class," says Léocadie Menguiyeb Bomboma, an itinerant teacher.
To travel between schools and students' homes, itinerant teachers use motorbikes provided by HI. They take the opportunity to raise awareness among parents and neighbours about the rights of children with disabilities. "I remember a deaf boy whose father refused to send him to school. I went to see him and convinced him to let his son go to school. Well, would you believe it, that boy is now top of his class," says Léocadie Menguiyeb happily.
Developing access to education for all
HI has been running inclusive education projects in Togo since 2009. Currently deployed in the north of the country, in the Savanes and Kara regions, HI's activities have enabled the identification, referral and retention in the school system of more than 500 children with disabilities in primary and secondary education for the 2024-2025 school year.
HI has also trained 150 primary school teachers in inclusive education, as well as 150 other teachers in intellectual disabilities and adapted teaching approaches. The organisation also provides practical support to keep these children in the school system by covering school fees and providing school kits, including supplies.
Thanks to this project, numerous initiatives have been supported over the years. In 2025, HI inaugurated Togo's first inclusive research resource centre in Dapaong. It contains resources adapted for the learning of students with all types of disabilities: documents, equipment, science laboratory, furniture, flat screens, etc. These resources are available to everyone, teachers and students alike, to promote a more open and inclusive school.
