APF Events

Eyes on Education:
An initiative of the Africa Peace Forum

ABOUT THE EYES ON EDUCATION PROJECT

Lazare Hounnake, a visually impaired Canadian of Togolese descent, attended Kekeli Neva Institute for the Blind in Togo from the age of nine through the end of high school. Since immigrating to Canada in 2002, Lazare has benefited from learning how to use Jaws®, a screen reader software program designed for the visually impaired.
Lazare has an immense appreciation for the increased opportunities available to him through use of this software: “When I arrived in Canada, I learned how to use Jaws® and I can do everything on my computer because of this software. I am currently enrolled in a counselling program a local college, and Jaws® has been the most important vehicle for my success”.
Now Lazare wishes to help the current students of Kekeli Neva gain access to this vital software. Although visually impaired students in Togo have made great strides since the founding of Kekeli Neva, they are constrained by a lack of educational tools designed for their situations. Any research they are able to conduct must be done using unwieldy Braille documents. Moreover, they are limited to using only those materials which have been translated into Braille.
Through the Eyes on Education initiative Lazare will not only bring Jaws® to his fellow students still in Togo – he will also teach them how to use it. The project therefore aims to both purchase the software and also ensure that students get the greatest possible leverage out of this innovative learning tool.
The educational and professional advantages afforded to visually impaired students through this project will sustain themselves through time, as each new generation of Kekeli Neva students learns how to use Jaws® from those who already know how. Students who are able to use the software will be more independent as a result of the enhanced employment opportunities that come with the ability to use a computer. Thus, in addition to contributing to their local economies, they will have a much greater chance of being able to provide for themselves, instead of being forced to rely on income assistance programs.
Lazare strongly believes in the utility of introducing the Jaws® software to the students of Kekeli Neva: “When I succeed to introduce Jaws® in Togo, it will be very helpful for the students and it will give them a chance in the job market which is not possible today. It will really change their lives”.

ABOUT KEKELI NEVA INSTITUTE FOR THE BLIND
“L’Institut des Aveugles de Togoville – Kekeli Neva” (The Togoville Institute for the Blind – Kekeli Neva”) was founded in Togo, West Africa, in 1984 by Father Fabio Gilli, a visually impaired priest from Italy. The words “Kekeli Neva” mean “Come to the Light” in Ewe, which is one of the many local languages in Togo, and Lazare’s mother tongue.
Kekeli Neva consists principally of the school, which provides education to visually impaired students from kindergarten to grade seven. Following graduation from primary school, students attend classes in the regular school system with the help of an on-site teacher from Kekeli Neva. Kekeli Neva also continues to provide accommodation and other support for students throughout secondary school and university. Currently Kekeli Neva supports a total of approximately 100 students. In addition to the school, Kekeli Neva houses a factory which produces chalk for classroom blackboards in the regular school system. It also has a farm where visually impaired adults can learn animal husbandry in order to increase their skill sets and career opportunities. The success of the students assisted by Kekeli Neva is demonstrated by the fact that at the time of the school’s founding, few if any visually impaired students attended school at the university level. Currently, however, about 15 of the 100 students supported by the school are studying at the University of Lomé. When they are able to gain access to vital learning tools such as screen reader software, as the Eyes on Education project is working to achieve, not only will these students’ career and education prospects expand even further, but more students will also be able to benefit from a university education.
Father Gilli, Kekeli Neva’s founder, notes that as a result of the supports offered by the school, children “began to work, study, and even to attend college….everyone is convinced that the blind could also make a great contribution to the social and political development of the country”

ABOUT LAZARE HOUNNAKE
Kossi Lazare Hounnake Adele (Lazare) was born on 31 December, 1979 in Lomé, Togo, in West Africa. At the age of nine, Lazare lost his sight as a result of an accident. He went to Kekeli Neva Institute for the Blind where he learned Braille and continued his education. Kekeli Neva’s Integration program allowed Lazare and his fellow students to attend classes in the regular school system while still receiving support from Kekeli Neva teachers.
Lazare became interested in music at a very young age, and by the time he reached 19 years old had written his first songs. He recorded eight songs with his first band, “Canne Blanche Musica”, and in 2000, Lazare traveled to Munich to record his first solo album, “Touche Pas”. The first single from the album became an instant hit in Togo.
In 2002, Lazare moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He enrolled at Vancouver Community College (VCC) where he learned Braille in English and acquired computer skills. Crucially, he also learned how to use screen reader software. Access to this software allowed Lazare to use word processing programs and do research on the Internet, thereby facilitating his continued education and career prospects. Currently he is enrolled in a counseling program, and he is eager to apply his skills to helping people in his adopted Canadian home.
Lazare has also continued his musical career since arriving in Canada. He has performed at many festivals and venues, including the Commodore, the Sunsplash Festival, and the African Peace Festival. In 2004 he recorded his second solo album, “Leave us Free”; its release spurred media interest in his story and he was featured in interviews and mini-documentaries. He has just finished recording his third solo album, “G8”, which is set to be released soon.
Lazare has a great appreciation for the support he received as a child from Kekeli Neva School for the Blind, as well as the opportunities he has had since moving to Canada which have been greatly increased by access to screen reader software. He has started the “Eyes on Education” project so that he may help his former schoolmates and other visually impaired people in Togo gain access to the same tools that have enabled his success.

For more information, please visit www.eyesoneducation.org, or contact

Tara Cooper
604 215 2170
tlcooper333@gmail.com

Lazare Hounnake
778 892 7757
lazare@shaw.ca