Phosphate dust in Togo

Health problems due to phosphate dust in Togo

Environmental dangers were the subject of a project in Togo. In southern Togo, phosphate is mined as a raw material for fertilizer and transported through several coastal villages to an export shipping terminal. There had been no capital investment in the facilities for several years, and the village population was repeatedly exposed to phosphate dust drifting from the trucks and railroad cars.

Workers in constant contact with phosphate and many villagers along the transport route who inhaled phosphate dust suffered significant damage to their health. Growing children were particularly affected. At first, the local people were helpless vis-à-vis the acute and chronic illnesses. Although they assumed a connection between phosphate mining and transport on the one hand and the illnesses on the other, they did not have enough solid information.

In collaboration with the organization Both Ends (www.bothends.nl), the Africa working group supported meetings in the coastal villages of Togo providing information to the public about the effects of phosphate dust on human health.

The Africa working group supported the information campaigns, which also informed people with health problems about their legal right to monetary compensation. Over the course of the campaigns, lawyers volunteered to help those affected to successfully file suit for damages.

As a consequence, working conditions in phosphate mining and transport were improved.