Sagbo AlexineKeeping the ovens working

Baker · CAF Tokoin · Family entrepreneur

Sagbo placing prepared bread inside her bakery — Photo 01 · L1032238-2

Bread, heat and daylight

Daylight filters through the gaps in the tree branches that form the walls of Sagbo Alexine's bakery in Lomé, Togo. Inside, Sagbo and a small team of workers knead dough by hand, divide it into individual loaves and bake the bread in a large wood-fired oven. The finished bread is distributed to local sellers throughout the city.

Sagbo's workers cutting and shaping dough by hand — Photo 04 · L1032290

Rows of hand-shaped loaves waiting to be baked — Photo 05 · L1032380

A worker tending the wood-fired oven — Photo 03 · L1032270-2

More than a business

Sagbo is married with four children. Two are learning trades as apprentices, while the younger two attend primary and secondary school. The bakery provides an income that helps Sagbo and her husband support their family and provide opportunities for their children.

The challenge for Sagbo has never been a shortage of customers, but having enough money to buy the flour needed to keep up with demand. Without sufficient working capital, she could only produce as much bread as her available supplies allowed. Through the CAF Tokoin collective, Sagbo received two loans supported by IADES and Lendwithcare, the first for £105 and the second for £157. The additional capital allowed her to purchase more flour and increase production.

A young worker preparing bread inside Sagbo's bakery — Photo 08 · DSCF4733-2

The modest exterior of Sagbo's bakery in Lomé — Photo 06 · L1032393-3

Sagbo arranging freshly prepared loaves — Photo 07 · L1032501-2

Looking ahead

With a third loan being processed, Sagbo hopes to buy larger quantities of flour and sugar and eventually invest in a dough mixer. For a business where so much of the work is still done by hand, the machine would reduce the physical demands of production and allow her to make more bread. For now, the work continues much as it always has.