Chronology of the Competence approach in Togo
In July 2004, Blaise Sedoh, Secretary Coordinator of the HIV/AIDS network for 24 west and central African National Societies of the Red Cross, was attending the International Conference on HIV/AIDS in Bangkok. During these meetings, at the request of the International Federation of the Red Cross, he was trained in the AIDS Competence approach by the Constellation for AIDS Competence.
Two months later, Blaise Sedoh was training facilitators of HIV/AIDS Enterprises in Cameroun, together with Jean-Louis Lamboray, Chair of the Constellation, and a coach from Rwanda.
Back in Togo, he experimented with the Self Assessment tool in four communities of the Maritime Region.
In the beginning of 2005, the representative from the Swiss Red Cross (one of the Togolese Red Cross supporters) found the Self Assessment tool to be so valuable that his organisation financed a three day workshop to train staff members of the Red Cross in the Central Region.
At that time, the process of AIDS Competence was officialy adopted and launched throughout the national network of the Togolese Red Cross.
In June of the same year, the Constellation asked Blaise Sedoh to lead the meeting “Health for Peace Initiative” in Banjul, Gambia. The participants were Health Ministers and Programme Health Directors of Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Conakry, Cape Verde and Equatorial Guinea. The goal of this meeting was to experiment with the Competence process and its Self Assessment tool that had been adapted to malaria. The Self Assessment framewrok had been sent before the meeting to all participants who were asked to test it within their own organisation. And once in Banjul, they were sent to villages and schools to practice the Self Assessment with its modification for malaria.
The experience was so convincing that Roll Back Malaria, who had organised the Banjul meeting, decided to train two facilitators from each of eight countries, in June 2006 during one week in Mombasa. Although Togo was not among the 8 countries selected by Roll Back Malaria, Blaise Sedoh was asked to design the agenda of the Mombasa workshop.
After the workshop, all of the participants were asked to experiment with the Malaria Competence process in their own country.
Togo had already made a start in doing this. As early as January 2005, the Togolese Red Cross had integrated the Self Assessment tool into its “Keep Up!” campaign, following the national distribution of bednets.
Twenty three coaches were trained to use the Self Assessment tool in 40 communities. Blaise Sedoh organised follow up training sessions all over the country. At the end of the year, all regional coordinators had been trained and started to spread the Malaria Competence process to all communities where the Red Cross had volunteers. This was done during the year 2006.
Since that time, the Malaria Competence approach and the use of its Self Assessment tool has become a part of the culture and skills of the Togolese Red Cross.