Togo-Turkey: Commercial partnership moves upward and forward

Economy

Wednesday, 20 October 2021 18:01

Togo-Turkey: Commercial partnership moves upward and forward

(Togo First) - President Recep Erdogan from Turkey was in Lomé yesterday, Oct. 19. Visiting Togo for the first time, the leader met with Togo’s President, Faure Gnassingbé.

During Erdogan’s stay, several cooperation agreements were signed between the two countries. Explaining the Turks’ motivation, Anadolu Agency said Ankara is attracted by “the economic growth Togo has been recording in the past few years, and its political stability,” and hopes for trade between the two nations to increase substantially.

Data released by the Banque Centrale des Etats de l’Afrique de l’Ouest (BCEAO) last January indicates that imports from Turkey to Togo grew from CFA13.39 billion in 2015 to CFA24 billion in 2019.

The upward dynamic was confirmed in 2020, despite the pandemic. This is one of the strong points the two countries want to leverage to boost trade between them. “Our economic relations, even if they are not yet at the level we want them to be, are improving. In 2020, we reached a trading volume of $148 million (ed. Note: CFA83.4 billion),” said President Erdogan after his one-on-one meeting with Togo’s President.

Looking in-depth, Togo mostly buys manufactured goods - construction material and agro-food products mainly- from Turkey. And it would seem that Turkish goods are cheaper than European goods and of better quality than China’s.

For its part, Turkey mostly buys cotton from Togo, but also fruits and cereals such as soybeans. The UN agency Comtrade valued these exports at CFA2.5 billion in 2019.

Still in line with the two governments’ efforts to boost bilateral trade, a business forum gathering Togolese and Turkish economic operators should be held in Lomé, in the coming weeks. This summit is good news for Togo which strives to attract more foreign direct investments (FDIs) to finance its national development plan (PND) and the new government roadmap.

Lomé is particularly interested in benefiting from Turkey’s expertise, relative to construction and agribusiness. The West African capital aims to be the main entry gate for Turkish investors in Africa.

“In Adétikopé, we have set up an industrial park where our Turkish friends could get space to establish their factories,” President Gnassingbé said. “Africa is taking a huge step towards integration and a single continental market. I believe that through us, Turkish investors can access the whole African market,” the Togolese leader added.

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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.