Bilakani Sabi grew up in Togo but decided to settle in Canada and return to his native country as a volunteer with Crossroads International and Togolese organization La Colombe.
By Caroline G. Murphy
“Everyone calls me Bil, but my real name is Bilakani,” said the Canadian-Togolese, who is in his fourth term as a volunteer with Crossroads International.
Bilakani Sabi grew up in the Kara region of northern Togo before studying law in Lomé. Then, he flew to Quebec in 2009, where he chose to settle and study again, this time at the national school of public administration. He already knows that he wants to work in development.
“My grandfather introduced me to helping others in the community when I was very young. I remember women transporting wood to sell at the market. Some of them didn’t have shoes, so my grandfather asked us to make shoes for them. Then they came back to sell yams at the market and offered them to us. You help others and others will help you! ”
After becoming a Canadian citizen in 2014, Bilakani sought to gain international work experience when he discovered Carrefour, whose mandate focused on the defense of women’s rights immediately attracted him.
“For cultural reasons, gender equity is super important. I believe that before colonization came to Africa, women were more important. They not only managed the house, but family budgets and social life. “Modernism” has created a harmful effect which has given more power to men at the expense of women. “
After two mandates as a volunteer in Burkina Faso, Bil returned to his native country in 2018. This time he became an organizational strengthening advisor to the local partner of Crossroads; the NGO La Colombe. He supports community groups to organize themselves into an agro-ecological cooperative, which he loves.
A key moment in his mandate came when he decided to offer a group of young local volunteers the opportunity to work in partnership with La Colombe on the same market garden local women have already settled in. “Today, these young people have a job and a work structure. I am very proud to see that it all started with my mandate. ”
For her part, La Colombe Coordinator, Thérèse Akakpo, is delighted with Bilakani’s presence on the team. “Crossroads’ volunteers allow us to provide follow-up and support that we would not have the resources to do alone. And Bil, it’s like he’s always been with us! ” confides the one that everyone affectionately nicknamed Granny.
Two Cultures in Your Luggage
“My advantage, being Togolese by origin, is to know the cultural dimensions of Togo of course, but also of Canada, and to reconcile the two. I have no problem fitting in here, I know how people work. But I didn’t want to be seen as a Westerner who came to teach them what to do. I just wanted to be with them and try to give them advice from time to time, “says Bil.
The volunteer is certain that the experience he has accumulated with Crossroads will help him for a job in development. “I know now how people are struggling on the ground to find funding and to change mentalities, and how difficult it is. I will certainly be able to use these achievements in a future job. ”
