Togo business registrations rebound after two years of decline

Economic governance

Wednesday, 08 April 2026 18:30

Togo business registrations rebound after two years of decline

(Togo First) - A total of 4,357 new companies were registered in Togo between January 1 and March 31, 2026, according to data from the Center for Business Formalities (CFE) seen by Togo First.

The number of registrations rose 2.2% compared with the same period in 2025, when 4,262 companies were created. The increase marks a rebound after a 5% year-on-year decline between the first quarters of 2024 and 2025.

Registrations reached 1,406 in January, 1,356 in February and 1,595 in March, pointing to a pickup in business formation toward the end of the quarter.

Togolese nationals continued to dominate entrepreneurial activity. Of the total, 3,457 companies were created by Togolese citizens, accounting for nearly 80%, compared with 900 by foreign nationals. Women owned 1,254 of the new companies, or about 29%.

The recovery follows two consecutive years of decline. In 2025, 14,202 companies were registered, down 4.8% from 14,919 in 2024. That drop came after a sharper contraction of 13% in 2024.

Authorities are continuing efforts to improve the business climate, including reducing the time and cost of starting a business and digitising administrative processes. They have also introduced incentives to support entrepreneurship.

Esaïe Edoh

REFORMS OVERVIEW

STARTING A BUSINESS (more info)

At the fifteenth position, worldwide, and first in Africa, under the Starting a Business index of the 2020 Doing Business ranking, Togo sustains its reformative dynamics with more reforms….

ENFORCING CONTRACTS (more info)

Compared to some years ago when it was one of the lowest rankers under the Doing Business’ Enforcing Contracts indicator, Togo, leveraging many efforts to improve its business climate, was able to jump significantly on the index in the recent years... .

CONTRACT EXECUTION (more info)

Creation of special chambers of commerce for small debts • Creation of chambers of commerce at the Court of Appeal • Civil and commercial cases now handled by distinct clerks • Establishment of commercial courts in Lomé and Kara • Lawyers and bailiffs now have access to the FORSETI COMMERCIAL platform • A maximum period of 100 days was fixed to settle a commercial dispute .

TRADING ACROSS BORDERS (more info)

In comparison to previous years,Togo has significantly improved its ranking under the“Trading across borders” indicator by adopting multiple reforms that focus mainly on the digitization and reduction in delays, for import and export procedures related to import and export.

In comparison to previous years, Togo has significantly improved its ranking on the “Trading across borders” index by adopting multiple reforms that focus mainly on the digitalization and reduction in delays, for import and export procedures related to import and export.

CONSTRUCTION PERMIT (more info)

After moving from the 133rd to 127th place under the 2020 Doing Business’ construction permit index, Togo intends to reiterate this feat in the coming edition of the global ranking. To this end, it has introduced this year multiple reforms.

GETTING ELECTRICITY (more info)

Over the past two years, Togo’s ranking under the Doing Business’ Getting electricity and water indicator has increased consistently. Owing this performance to multiple reforms aimed at making it easier for businesses to access power and water, Lomé plans to introduce even more reforms this year to keep up its improvements.

REGISTERING A PROPERTY (more info)

Out of all the 'Doing Business’ indicators, Property Registration is where Togo has improved the most since 2018. Indeed, after spending years in the lowest part of this ranking, the country now seeks to beat Rwanda which is the best performer on this index in Africa. To do so, Lomé has been introducing many reforms, with the latest batch implemented this year.

PUBLIC PROCUREMENT (more info)

From professionalization to digitization, through legislative regulations, Togo’s public procurement framework is constantly being modernized. Several reforms have been implemented to improve the sector much to the benefit of the private sector, which is the focus of the National Development Plan.

PAYING TAXES AND DUTIES (more info)

To improve its business environment, Togo introduced some important reforms related to the payment of tax and duties. From the replacement of some taxes to the cancellation of others through exemptions, the country has only one objective: offer the most attractive tax framework to investors and economic operators. To achieve this, the authorities relied on digitization.