Assibi et Salifou Comic Book Initiative

To design the comic book, the project implemented a youth-driven model to encourage content that effectively addresses the information needs of Togolese youth. The project staff identified and collaborated with a local association of young people to co-create the content, including identifying the key themes; developing the story lines; identifying the primary and secondary characters; and turning the scripts into storyboards.

The first story, Assibi et Salifou: La Premiere Fois, deals with sexual debut and explains the importance of consensual sex.  It tells the story of the young couple, Assibi (15) and Salifou (17), and how Assibi is pressured into having sex with Salifou. Click here to download the comic.

15,000 copies of the comic book were distributed free of charge to schools and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) around the country. Six reading clubs have also been established, in which Peace Corps volunteers facilitate discussions to analyse the messages communicated through the comics. The clubs are intended to promote a culture of knowledge sharing and establish a support network for youth as they translate knowledge into practice. Participants will be encouraged to identify social norms and consider sexual and reproductive practices.

As one of the key goals of the project is to increase the use of reproductive health services, each comic book carries coupons that can be traded for free services at the Association Togolaise pour le Bien-Etre Familial (ATBEF) clinics. 

The initiative has also developed a social media toolkit which allows young people to participate in debate and share messages through Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp.

There are plans for the comic to be adapted and distributed in other countries in the region including Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Mauritania, and Niger.

Youth, Sexual and Reproductive Health

To Togo, where 60% of the population is less than 25 years old, only 36% of unmarried sexually active youth report using contraception, despite being at increased risk of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection. Young people represent 55% of all cases of sexually transmitted infections annually, and in 2013 an estimated 7,000 pregnancies occurred among school-age girls. Open discussion about sex is largely taboo in Togo, especially among young people. For this reason a comic book was perceived to be a way to facilitate learning by engaging readers in a story inspired by their individual realities as girls and boys.

In 2013, EngenderHealth and the U.S. Agency for International Development/West Africa launched Agir pour la Planification Familiale (AgirPF), a five-year programme designed to expand women’s access to and use of family planning services in five West African countries - Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Mauritania, Niger, and Togo. By educating communities on the benefits of contraception, training providers to deliver quality services, and expanding access in underserved communities, the project seeks to increase informed decision making about family planning and broaden voluntary use of contraceptives.