Togo is one of Africa's most visa-opened country, according to Jumia
Wednesday, 25 September 2019 17:36 
(Togo First) - Mauritius, Benin, Rwanda, Guinea Bissau, and Togo are the five most open countries in Africa, in terms of mobility and free movement. This was disclosed in a report recently released by e-commerce platform Jumia.
The pan-African startup bases its ranking on the visa openness index published by the World Tourism Organization (WTO) in its third Hospitality Report Africa.
The index is calculated by assessing the percentage of people affected by the absence of visa requirement, visa on arrival, e-visa and traditional visa.
Togo's openness index is 71.4 which enables the country to rapidly increase the number of international tourist arrivals.
Jumia, looking at the various figures, urges African governments to suppress visa requirement for fellow African citizens. Also, these governments should, according to the startup, work with the private sector to "launch campaigns to promote their local travel destinations and touristic offers to attract more regional tourists," said Estelle Verdier, Jumia’s Travel Manager.
In 2018, travel and tourism were among the main forces that drove the growth of African economies. They contributed to 8.5% of their GDP, generating $194.2 billion. According to the 2019 Hospitality Africa Report, Africa is the second most dynamic continent, in terms of hospitality. The sector recorded, according to the document, a growth of 5.6% (against a global average increase of 3.9%). It comes behind the Asia-Pacific region. The number of international tourists who flocked to the African continent over the period reviewed was 67 million (+7%), spending there $58.5 billion (9.6%) of total exports.
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.
