Oh, what dedication translation teams in Nigeria have! In Western cultures, we take so much for granted—having an established written language, access to reliable technology and having training from young ages in how to use the internet. Because many languages do not have a writing system (orthography) and the people do not have access to computers and technology, translation teams must learn how to develop a logical alphabet system and learn to use basic computer skills in order to start a Bible translation into their language. Due to the travel restrictions of COVID-19, TWFTW developed online courses to make training more easily accessible so that translation teams could continue to receive the necessary training to develop a writing system and translation tools to ensure an accurate and credible translation of the Bible.

Recently, Yusuf Samson, one of the Ashen-Tsikimba translators, attended a TWFTW online Training Summit and excitedly shared, “During the training for the consultants, I learned additional ways on how to translate a verse in ways that it will be easy to understand by the people speaking the local language. During the Zoom training, I learned how to send an email! And [how] tone makes all the difference for how someone perceives something. I realized this [tone] was also the same with the Bible translation. Also, I learned the type of orthography we have and the style we are using. I understand the principle of practical orthography.”

Another Ashen-Tsikimba translator, Daniel Habila, exclaimed, “Blessed be to God for his grace upon my life and my family! I thank him for the strength, wisdom, knowledge, and understanding [that] I’ve seen God’s hand toward the work of Bible translation in my community. This was my first experience with online training. I now know how to produce different sounds [written]. I also learned how to send messages through email and how to download the messages. I learned more about an effective orthography principle—how you can start developing, testing, evaluating, and revising orthography. Also, during our consultant check of the book of Luke, I learned how to render key Biblical Terms in my language. I’m grateful to TWFTW for their effort to see that the online training was successful; God bless you all!”