Togo Launches Second Phase of General Business Census to Fill Data Gaps

Economic governance

Thursday, 28 August 2025 08:32

Togo Launches Second Phase of General Business Census to Fill Data Gaps

(Togo First) - An additional phase of Togo's second General Business Census (RGE-2) began on Wednesday, August 27, 2025. The operation, which targets areas not covered in the main phase, will continue until September 10, according to a joint statement from the Ministries of Commerce, Territorial Administration, Development Planning, and Economy.

This new stage follows the initial phase, which took place from March 3 to May 3. The current phase is divided into two parts. The first, from August 27 to September 10, covers the Maritime region (Zio prefecture), the Plateaux region (Moyen-Mono, Haho, and Anié), and the Savanes region (Cinkassé, Kpendjal, Oti, Oti-Sud, Tandjoaré, and Tône). The second part, scheduled from August 27 to September 5, will focus on the Central region (Blitta, Sotouboua, and Tchaoudjo) and the Kara region (Binah, Kéran, and Kozah).

As in the first phase, census agents will be deployed to collect information on the geographical distribution, size, and sectors of business activity. The goal is to provide public authorities and investors with reliable, updated data to guide policies and investment strategies.

The census is financially supported by the World Bank through the Harmonizing and Improving Statistics in West Africa Project (HISWA). The first census, conducted in 2017, identified 115,880 businesses throughout the country.

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.