I arrived in Togo in the late afternoon and went to check into a nice hotel (it was French-owned and the price was right) in the capital city of Lome. Togo is another country that borders the Gulf of Guinea (so the beaches are very refreshing to see). It has a tropical climate right now and is also dependent on agriculture to survive economically.
Though the main language here is French, there have been many cultural influences and it is a country with a rich cultural history. In fact, the countries in this area of Africa were once known as the ‘slave coast’ because they provided trade access via their sea ports. This particular country has a big port and still has lots of merchandise and containers that are coming and going from all over the world.
I am also finding that this part of Africa is not centered religiously around either Christianity or Islam. Both of those religious views seem to be a minority here as indigenous beliefs represent the largest religious group in this country. This makes sense when you realize that in this small country alone, there are about 40 different ethnic groups and I have met only wonderful people here in during my short stay.
Since Togo is a small country, I hope to finish my mission work quickly and be off and running. The next morning, I found a taxi driver for the day. Mr. Kazmirt Pedomey knew the city very well and was driving me from place to place in no time.
Thank you to all my journalist friends and their bosses. Mr. Gabin Koissidjin with the newspaper Forum De La Semaine. Regis Talikpeti and Joachim Kokou Loko and his boss with the newspaper La Matinee and Dounia Le Monde, Didier LeDoux with the newspaper Liberte. My good friend Erik Gato for his radio interview and who really took pride in his work in studying each of his discussions on the radio interview.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs were wonderful when I went there. I met with the Minister himself, Mr. Elliot Ohin, who was very receptive and Vlora Citaku’s letter was hand delivered. Mr. Ohin seemed really enthusiastic about things and life in general and knew Kosovo’s case in detail. I’m unable to give more details of our meeting due to privacy concerns and other sensitive reasons.
Economically, Togo seems to be doing okay, but there is always room for improvement. Politically, the country has a slight history of political unrest. The most recent being with elections in 2005 when more than 400 people were killed and 40,000 Togolese fled to neighboring countries.
I enjoyed my short visit here and wish all the best to this country and it’s wonderful people.
Though the main language here is French, there have been many cultural influences and it is a country with a rich cultural history. In fact, the countries in this area of Africa were once known as the ‘slave coast’ because they provided trade access via their sea ports. This particular country has a big port and still has lots of merchandise and containers that are coming and going from all over the world.
I am also finding that this part of Africa is not centered religiously around either Christianity or Islam. Both of those religious views seem to be a minority here as indigenous beliefs represent the largest religious group in this country. This makes sense when you realize that in this small country alone, there are about 40 different ethnic groups and I have met only wonderful people here in during my short stay.
Since Togo is a small country, I hope to finish my mission work quickly and be off and running. The next morning, I found a taxi driver for the day. Mr. Kazmirt Pedomey knew the city very well and was driving me from place to place in no time.
Thank you to all my journalist friends and their bosses. Mr. Gabin Koissidjin with the newspaper Forum De La Semaine. Regis Talikpeti and Joachim Kokou Loko and his boss with the newspaper La Matinee and Dounia Le Monde, Didier LeDoux with the newspaper Liberte. My good friend Erik Gato for his radio interview and who really took pride in his work in studying each of his discussions on the radio interview.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs were wonderful when I went there. I met with the Minister himself, Mr. Elliot Ohin, who was very receptive and Vlora Citaku’s letter was hand delivered. Mr. Ohin seemed really enthusiastic about things and life in general and knew Kosovo’s case in detail. I’m unable to give more details of our meeting due to privacy concerns and other sensitive reasons.
Economically, Togo seems to be doing okay, but there is always room for improvement. Politically, the country has a slight history of political unrest. The most recent being with elections in 2005 when more than 400 people were killed and 40,000 Togolese fled to neighboring countries.
I enjoyed my short visit here and wish all the best to this country and it’s wonderful people.
FORUM de la semaine 1, 2 PDF
