Energy Generation, an incubator based in Lome, is launching an entrepreneurship excellence program for women only. The Wenyonu program as it is called will teach Togolese women solar entrepreneurship to empower them.

In this framework, the incubator issued this month a call for registration to select 80 women across Togo’s five economic regions. Selected applicants will be trained as technical commercials in the solar energy sector.

Backed by the PISCCA Fund (established by the French embassy in Togo), the program will provide technical training in sizing, setting up, and maintaining PV solar systems. Personalized coaching and entrepreneurial training will also be given, and business projects could be financed through a loan mechanism.

“Women who have a business project could get seed funding,” Energy Generation said. “The whole program will take place in Lomé and is free. Some money will be provided for women picked to attend the program, to reduce their spending, enable them to come to Lomé and stay throughout the training.”

This is a 3-month training (January to March 2022) that will be held on Energy Generation’s campus in Lomé. For those who need it, the incubator’s support could be extended to December 2022.

Wave International, a mobile money operator, will soon start operating in Togo. The firm, to this end, recently launched a tender to recruit staff in Togo and other countries.

In 2019, a delegation from the operator had met in South Africa with Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé. On that occasion, the firm told the leader it wanted to set up offices in Togo. 

Gilles Assouline, MD Wave International, said at the time that the company wanted to support Togo’s National Development Plan (NDP). 

"I presented to Mr. President the major concepts that drive the operations of this platform, which are in line with the 17 SDGs. The examples were taken from those presented in the NDP and which are in line with the presidential vision that we wish to help materialize."

Founded by Drew Durbin and Lincoln Quirk, Wave is a fintech company with a presence in several African countries, including Senegal and Ivory Coast. It offers low-cost mobile money transfers. Depositing and withdrawing cash using the app is free while sending funds to another user costs 1% of the amount transferred. In 2020, Sendwave was among the most used money transfer applications in Senegal. 

Wave International’s arrival in Togo should make the mobile money market, which is currently dominated by Togocom and Moov Africa, more competitive. 

Esaïe Edoh

Ivorian startup Cinetpay announced the launch of a digital payment platform for school and university fees in Togo. 

According to the press release relaying the information, the Ivorian startup’s platform regroups electronic payment terminals (EPTs) and web platforms that will enable schools and universities to collect registration and tuition fees via mobile money and other electronic channels.

“This platform will allow them to collect online registration and tuition fees, to track all payments in real-time and to automatically send a reminder by email, SMS or Whatsapp to parents, as deadlines approach or in case of delay,” said the Togolese subsidiary of the Ivorian startup specialized in electronic transactions and mobile money.

CinetPay, whose e-schooling platform has a dozen institutional users, added that schools and universities can integrate, into their website, features that ease payments via mobile money, e-wallets, and bank cards.

Created in Côte d'Ivoire and established in Togo a year ago, Cinetpay is a fintech company. Unlike most other fintech firms present in the country, which focus on banking, finance, and e-commerce, it opted for the education sector. Cinetpay aims to win over all Togolese schools and universities by 2023.

This ambition aligns with the Togolese government’s 2020-2025 roadmap; under which Togo is set to become a reference in the digital sector, through the transformation and growth of the digital economy.

Jonas Aklesso Daou, CEO of Zener (formerly Sodigaz), won the African Entrepreneur of the Year award at the Bamako Forum held last month. The forum, a top-level brainstorming gathering focused on Africa’s future, is held once a year and it has been over the past two decades. 

The award recognizes the commitment of the young Togolese entrepreneur, who, with his company, makes an impact in his sector. The SME, which operates in energy, industry, and service, “has become one of the major actors in these key sectors and it has also expanded in Benin and Burkina Faso, with more than 500 employees,” Daou declared.

Zener, Togo’s leading gas trading company, has a terminal in Togo. It exports most of its output. Besides this company, Jonas Daou is also active in the metallurgy industry, car sales, digital counseling, and services. 

Last month, the Togolese businessman raised the capital of one of his other companies, Diwa International, a car dealer, to over CFA1 billion. With that company, he joined the Elite Lounge BRVM program. The latter is the 3rd compartment of the Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières (BRVM), dedicated to the SME/SMI of the Uemoa.

Since September 2020, he has been at the top of the Association of Large Enterprises of Togo. 

 Esaïe Edoh

Following a massive $ 1.5 billion investment in Bitcoin by Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, the price of this virtual currency recently surged above $50,000. This is a good time to introduce Donaldson Sackey, a Togolese international footballer, entrepreneur, stylist, and architect. Sackey, in his 30s, recently launched his cryptocurrency.

Why launch his cryptocurrency? What challenges surround cryptocurrencies, knowing that most central banks in the world, especially in Africa, are reluctant to adopt them? 

Could cryptocurrencies be a curse or a threat to African economies? In this interview, the young Togolese entrepreneur gives his take on the matter. 

Togo First: Who is Donaldson Nukunu Sackey?

Donaldson Nukunu Sackey: Donaldson Nukunu Sackey is an entrepreneur who owns several businesses in Europe and Africa. He is the CEO of Timeless Capital Technology.

He was also a Togolese international and professional footballer. Thanks to his work, he has appeared twice in Forbes magazine and once in Forbes 30 Under 30.

Togo First: You were a football player, a Togolese international. How did you go from being a footballer to launching your digital currency? What drove you towards fintech? 

DNS: I believe that as we grow, we learn many things. Some of them may serve us later in our lives. I was always interested in technology. My father was a computer scientist and he influenced me a lot. At 12, when I had some spare time I would fix my classmates’ computers. Later, I attended business school, and alongside my football career, I started studying computer science at the University of Applied Sciences. I think we learn a lot in our life that we apply when the time comes. For me, launching a cryptocurrency that is dedicated to Togo is a service rendered to the country.

TF: Last September, you launched your cryptocurrency, the Timeless Capital Coin. What is the particularity of this new digital currency?

DNS: The Timeless Capital Coin is a cryptocurrency that is powered by an ecosystem of Blockchain-based tools and services, designed for entrepreneurs of developing countries in Africa and elsewhere. It allows entrepreneurs to convert cash into cryptocurrencies. This could be a blessing for African countries; it will help governments overcome the main barriers to development, such as high inflation, embezzlement, and corruption. 

What is special about Timeless Capital is that it will have a physical cryptocurrency bank in the future. That way, customers will be able to convert their cryptocurrency to cash or buy it from Timeless Capital Cryptocurrency Bank. Our currency will be patronized by various businesses and will also be established as a means of payment.

We also plan to tackle social issues, particularly in Togo, by creating blockchain technology schools and programs.

TF: How valuable is the Timeless Capital Coin in the cryptocurrency market today?

DNS: The Timeless Capital Coin is currently worth $ 0.10 on the market, but we are working to increase its value to, at least, $ 1 in the next couple of years. Of course, you never know, it might even exceed our expectations.

TF: With Timeless Capital Coin, you can make the “African dream” a reality. How could this Blockchain-based currency help young African entrepreneurs, in particular Togolese, for whom access to finance is a real hassle?

DNS: Africa, which has one of the largest populations in the world, is still struggling to exploit its digital economy. There is no doubt that the potential is huge as more than half of the population is under 25. Our goal is to train this youth on cryptocurrency and allow them to learn about it.

A lot of people in Africa use more than one phone and don't have a bank account, so why not use this feature to create a platform with a banking system? This would allow entrepreneurs in Africa, including those in Togo, to harness their digital economy.

TF: About your cryptocurrency, you suggested it may be the blessing Africa needs to overcome problems like public fund embezzlement and corruption. What do you exactly mean by that? 

DNS: If we're talking about a Blockchain system, it's not just cryptocurrency, it's more the technology behind it. Blockchain technology can enable people who are not connected to banking services to access resources that may have been inaccessible to them.

For example, people would have access to new ways to save money, pay their bills, etc. Others will be able to apply for loans, sell their products and services, and create their resources to conquer other niches in their communities, through decentralized Blockchain-based applications.

TF: The rise of cryptocurrencies in recent years has raised many concerns about cybercrime. In Togo, for example, several criminal groups have been dismantled. How can people protect themselves against cyber scammers in this context? 

DNS: Timeless Capital greatly focuses on teaching Blockchain technologies. We are going to train people to easily identify scams. Such things happen when there is a lack of knowledge about cryptocurrency. We cannot blame the cryptocurrencies themselves, because scams happen everywhere.

TF: What is your vision of the African cryptocurrency and Blockchain market in the coming years?

DNS: Cryptocurrencies have been around for over a decade now, but what is driving Africa's crypto-renaissance today? This has to do with different factors, such as the ability of Africans, concerning finance, to implement modern technological changes. In Africa, the advanced technology sector has developed, and this is particularly true in sub-Saharan countries. Africa will be one of the strongest continents relative to the cryptocurrency market since digital currencies mean more freedom for many. 

As a Togolese, I see a lot of potential for this country because cryptocurrency is not yet widespread in West Africa. If we look at mobile money companies like M-Pesa which has been operating since 2007 and now dominates the mobile money market, I think we should always be open to innovations at their early stages, instead of being latecomers.

Blockchain or cryptocurrency technology is Africa's future. It facilitates or improves digital infrastructure. Do we have to wait until it is well-established in Europe, the US, Asia before adopting it?

Since Sept. 10, 2020, the Togolese Fintech Semoa has made it possible for Ecobank customers to transfer money from the lender’s mobile App to their Tmoney e-wallet (owned by Togocom). This is done via a Bot called Dédé. 

This service allows “Ecobank customers to transfer money from home in a context where they presently have to go to an ATM, withdraw their funds and look for a place where they can make a T-Money deposit.” 

In addition to this solution, Edem Adjamagbo’s startup works to deploy its WhatsApp Banking services for Orabank.

As a reminder, the parent company SEMOA Group has already signed operating agreements with the Moroccan BMCE Bank and SUNU Bank Togo. Ultimately, it aims to establish the service in at least 15 African countries.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Gozem plans to expand to a new town in Togo, two years after starting operations in Lomé. In this framework, the startup is conducting surveys on social networks to find out the opinion of its clients. 

The firm, already present in Benin and Gabon, also eyes the following markets in the next two years: Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, DRC and Rwanda. 

Last year, in November, Gozem reported that its app had been downloaded more than 250,000 times. 

Séna Akoda

Over the fifty finalists selected for the 2019 Africa Netpreneur Prize initiative, two Togolose women were selected.

They are namely, Aimée Abra Tenu Lawani, promoter of the Kari Kari soap, and Ahoefa Allah-Assogba, founder of Togossime, an e-commerce platform that deals in made-in-Togo products.

The next step, to get closer to winning the prize, for the two entrepreneurs is to be among the top 10 finalists. The winning “netpreneur” will get a $1 million grant, according to a statement relased by the Jack Ma foundation. The nine other finalists will also get a grant, of a lesser amount, and will have access to the community of African netpreneurs, benefiting from their expertise and learn about the best practices prevailing in this community.

The Africa Netpreneur Initiative is led by the Jack Ma foundation and its African partner Nailab, a Kenya-based business incubator founded by Kenyan Sam Gichuru. By 2030, the Jack Ma foundation should, under this program, grant $10 million to 100 young African entrepreneurs and women.

For this edition, about 10,000 applications were submitted.

Séna Akoda

Cameroon-based multipurpose web platform and incubator, Bellomar Learning, has expanded to Togo. The firm recently announced on its official website.

The platform thus enters Togo through its partner, VPS Inter Sarlu, which is now the sole distributor of its products and services in the West African nation. This is the fifth partnership reached by Bellomar Learning in the past three months, the latest having enabled the educational firm to establish itself in Congo Brazzaville.

Bellomar Learning provides courses mostly in industrial chemistry, with a focus on soaps and detergents, but also in other areas like agribusiness, agriculture, cosmetics and waste recycling.

VPS Inter Sarlu, the firm’s new local partner in Togo, is headed by Abel Essey (alumni of the Tony Elumelu Foundation entrepreneurship program). The company specializes in agricultural engineering and engineering training.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Last week, Togolese startup New Road Company revealed its chocolate drink, Choco Noor.

According to the firm’s Managing Director, Adoyi A. Bimon-Isso, the drink’s production aligns with Togo’s national development plan (PND 2018-2022), which is to make Made in Togo products. 

Indeed, the startup uses locally grown cocoa to make the beverage. The latter, according to executives of New Road Company, meets all standards set by the Togolese Institute for Agricultural Research (ITRA) and the National Hygiene Institute (INH).

This was confirmed by Martin Aziato, Head of Food Technology at ITRA, and Dikeni Kondi Ousmane from INH.

Aziato on the same occasion deplored the low level of cocoa processing despite the beans being produced in quantity and quality across the African continent. He therefore lauded New Road Company’s initiative and urged Togolese to follow its example.

Séna Akoda