It is said that in challenging times strong relationships are built. Proving this might be true, two Togolese IT specialists are working hand in hand to achieve one objective: to provide vital communications services to the response community in Central African Republic (C.A.R.) - one of the largest humanitarian crises of our time, now in danger of being forgotten.

In December 2012, conflict erupted in the Central African Republic, a country rich in natural resources but with one of the world’s poorest populations. It is precisely at the beginning of this emergency when Komi Amedjonekou, a Togolese IT specialist, burst onto the scene, joining the World Food Programme (WFP) in Bangui as an ICT Officer and head of the ICT team. As he settled down in his new position, he started coordinating WFP ICT activities across the country and providing expert support to users. As time flew by, the situation in the country continued to deteriorate. 

Following the activation of the Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) in 2013 in response to the escalating crisis, Ekue Ayih, an experienced telecommunications expert from the Fast IT and Telecommunications Emergency and Support Team (FITTEST), was deployed as ETC Coordinator in Bangui in February 2014. 

But how did this collaboration between the WFP IT and ETC teams impact on the response community and operation? This joint effort has made the response more efficient as they work as one team. For example, WFP IT and ETC staff installed together a radio network to provide security telecommunications services to the humanitarian staff based in the capital, Bangui. “However, WFP IT support is not limited to providing human resources with technical expertise,” Ekue explains. “In fact, WFP is hosting ETC services in Bouar, Bambari and Paoua where satellite infrastructure from WFP is used to provide dedicated internet services to the response community. Through this collaboration, we are able to provide cost-effective services.”