Togo First
Togo: Black Divinities Festival returns after 10 years
After a 10-year break, Togo will host the Black Divinities Festival again. The ninth edition will be held in Aneho and Glidji from January 12 to 14.
According to its organizers, The Black Divinities Festival aims to promote endogenous religions and celebrate cultural diversity in Togo. The coming edition is under the theme “Togo: Land of our ancestors, unknown land”.
Also, like Benin’s Vodun Days, the Togolese festival will shed light on rituals and art performances of various communities, sacred dances, traditional songs, and more.
Traditional shows will be performed by various tribes, such as the Kondonas and the Solas from Northern Togo. There will also be Fa consultations and a carnival.
Exhibitions, food tastings, concerts, and more will be organized. The Festival is open to all.
Fiacre Kakpo
Business Creation: Togo set a record in 2023
Over the past year, 15,654 businesses were created in Togo. Togo First obtained the data from the country’s Center for Business Formalities (Centre de Formalités des Entreprises, CFE).
The figure, a new record, is up 13% compared to 2022 when the CFE registered 13,835 new businesses.
The local-to-foreigner ratio shows that Togolese nationals officially set up 13,032 businesses in 2023, against 11,659 in 2022, or 12% less. The number of businesses registered by foreigners shot up 20% to 2,622, against 2,176 in 2022.
According to CFE data, over half of the businesses registered last year were registered during the first semester. Over the period, 8,283 businesses were registered. That is 14% more than the number registered in H1 2022: 7,217. In H2 2023, 7,371 businesses were registered, against 7,351 in H2 2022 (+0.2% YoY).
The government attributes the increase to various reforms it introduced to boost the country’s business climate. Some of these include shorter delays and lower costs for setting up a business, as well as the dematerialization of related paperwork.
Esaïe Edoh
Togo: Lomé to host a Business digitalization conference on February 22
Lomé will host the Odoo Roadshow, a conference on business digitalization, next month. Initiated by Odoo, an open-source management software developer based in Belgium and the US, the event is scheduled for February 22.
On this occasion, the developer will present Odoo 17, the latest version of its software.
Last year, many Togolese firms adopted the Odoo platform to speed up their digitalization. This happened under the Lol Kelew program launched by the Chamber of Trade of Togo (CCI-Togo). Backed by the European Union (EU), the program focused on helping targeted businesses better operate, providing them training on the management of stocks, orders, sales, and customer service.
More than 5 million people use the Odoo software worldwide.
To register for the Odoo-Roadshow in Lomé, click here.
Togo: Civil Aviation Agency gets new director
Idrissou Ahabou is the new director of Togo’s National Agency for Civil Aviation (ANAC). He replaces Gnama Latta.
Ahabou was appointed in line with a presidential decree that Togo First obtained.
As the ANAC’s new boss, Lieutenant Colonel Ahabou will advance the agency’s agenda, which is to make the Togolese aviation safe and efficient.
A State company, the ANAC organizes, coordinates, and harmonizes air transport at the local and international levels.
Esaïe Edoh
Togo: National Lottery contributed CFA6.04 billion to the national budget in 2022
The Togolese National Lottery (LONATO) contributed CFA6.04 billion to the national budget in 2022. This was recently disclosed by the country’s tax office, OTR.
The figure, generated via corporate income tax, contrasts with CFA5.5 billion and CFA4.6 billion in 2021 and 2020, respectively (thus marking a 9% and 30% increase).
According to the OTR, the LONATO's contribution at the end of October 2023 stood at CFA5.4 billion. Pointing out that the contribution for 2023 could exceed that of 2022, the Tax Office attributed the increase to "profound changes" made by the LONATO from July 1, 2023. Indeed, the LONATO now carries out 12 draws per week, compared with 4 previously.
Established in 1966, the LONATO is a 100% State-owned company. It is also one of Togo’s public firms that generates the most sales. By 2021, it had generated CFA96.6 billion against CFA87.8 billion in 2020, and CFA83.4 billion in 2019.
Esaïe Edoh
Togo: Government lowers taxes on mobile money transfers with new reform
In Togo, the recently-adopted 2024 finance bill incorporates a major tax reform on the taxation of mobile money transfers.
In line with the reform, these transactions will be subject to only one tax from now on–the Tax on Financial Transactions (Taxe sur les activités financières or TAF).
Before the reform, mobile money transactions were also subjected to the Value Added Tax (VAT). According the government, this made it “difficult to manage tax declarations for these activities”.
The government told the parliamant that "the major objective is not to subject the same activity to different taxes based on the activity being incidental or principal."
The new reform came into effect on January 1, 2024. Lomé claimed it could reduce the costs borne by the end consumer, hence expanding the use of digital payments and fostering financial inclusion.
Before the reform, mobile money transfers in Togo were subject to a VAT rate of 18%. Under the new arrangements, they will be subject to a 10% Financial Activities Tax (TAF). The switch from one rate to the other - a difference of 8%, i.e. a reduction of almost half - could potentially lead to lower rates for consumers, according to Togolese civil society organizations.
The reform is good news for the country’s mobile operators, but not only. Indeed, a Lomé-based fintech expert told Togo First that the move could also benefit fintech companies, such as Gozem which plans to launch its mobile money service, and payment aggregators, whose margins could increase subsequently.
Mobile Money expanded rapidly in Togo in recent years, spurred by the country’s efforts for the digitalization of the economy.
According to an Afrobarometer survey, only one in four Togolese adults has a bank account, yet three times as many use mobile money accounts for their financial transactions.
However, some stakeholders fear that the government may decide to increase the tax on financial activities (TAF) over the next few fiscal years, from its current level of 10%, one of the lowest in the Uemoa.
Fiacre E. Kakpo
Togo: Construction of Datcha University set to begin in 2024
Togo will kickstart the first phase of its regional university construction program next year. In this phase, the country will start building a university in Datcha, Plateaux region, and continue delocalizing the University of Kara. The news was announced last week, December 22, by Sani Yaya, Minister of Economy and Finances.
“The first phase of the project to build new universities in each region begins in 2024 and concerns the University of Kara and the University of Datcha,” said Yaya, emphasizing that the project is a priority for the government. The project will be covered by the 2024 budget which stands at CFA2,179 billion.
Three months ago, the project for building the Datcha University was assessed and adopted by decree.
In Kara, the first stone for the project was laid in April by President Faure Gnassingbe.
According to the government, the project should also focus on diversifying training offerings, with emphasis on vocational, technological, and scientific courses.
" It will improve the quality of higher education and offer training pathways with a predominantly vocational, technological, and scientific focus," Lomé noted.
Esaïe Edoh
Togo: Budget for 2024 stands at CFA 2,179 billion
The Togolese parliament adopted the 2024 finance bill last week, on December 22. The budget stands at CFA2,179 billion–expenditures and revenues–making it the first time the figure ever exceeds CFA2 billion.
The new budget is up 10.3% compared to the 2023 rectifying budget which stood at CFA1,975 billion.
Next year, 48% of the budget will be devoted to promoting inclusion, against 44.4% in 2023. Economic transformation will capture 30.1% of the budget, and State reinforcement will get 21.9%.
The funds will be spent on projects aimed at making the poorest people more resilient, and to organize the legislative and regional elections. Part of the budget will also be channelled to efforts for better defending the country and bolstering the following sectors: health, public works, maritime economy, fisheries, agriculture, digital economy, trade, and industry.
Also, Togo plans to use the IMF's zero-interest Extended Credit Facility (ECF), $400 million, to meet its needs in terms of inclusion and national security, according to the Minister of Economy and Finance, Sani Yaya.
Lomé also plans to provide local authorities with the resources they need to finance their development projects.
Esaïe Edoh
Togo: Japan and Unicef provide water and sanitation facilities in the Savanes region
New water and sanitation facilities were inaugurated last week in Togo’s Savanes region. Provided by Japan and UNICEF, the facilities were inaugurated on December 21.
They include 61 mixed (solar and hand-powered) water pumps and 38 toilets for schools and rural communities. According to UNICEF, they should improve the lives of the people of the region which currently faces terrorist attacks.
The facilities were set up under the Savanes Resilience and Reinforcement Emergency Project (PURS) and a water project backed by Japan and UNICEF.
UNICEF and Togo, it is worth noting, are in talks to redefine the terms of their cooperation in 2024-2026. The new partnership will cover access to education, health, water, hygiene, and sanitation infrastructure, protection against violence, exploitation and abuse, and social protection.
Esaïe Edoh
Togo: Chinese and South Korean companies invested over CFA64 billion in the free-trade area (end 2022)
Chinese and Korean companies active in Togo’s free-trade area weighed about CFA64 billion at the end of 2022. The evaluation was made by the Investment Promotion Agency and Free Zone (API-ZF) and relayed by the Minister of Investment Promotion, Manuella Santos, on December 21, 2022, in Lomé. Alongside the figure, Santos reported that the Asian firms created over 3,000 local jobs. She spoke during an Investors' Breakfast held yesterday, at the 2 Février Hotel.
"As of December 31, 2022, your companies, in the free-trade zone alone, were estimated to have invested nearly CFA64 billion and created 3,036 jobs for local workers, according to the agency's international statistics," Minister Santos told the businesses. She took the opportunity to present them with investment opportunities available in Togo, as well as take stock of their concerns and requests.
"We invite you to get involved in the implementation of our economic policy presented in the Togo 2025 roadmap," added Manuella Santos.
Some of the companies that attended the meeting included Leopard Moto Sarl (which sells bikes), Amina Togo Sarl, West Africa Battery (which makes batteries for bikes and cars), YSO Daily Products Manufacturing Sarl; Sofina Sarl (they make nylon thread, fishing nets, spool thread, nylon thread, packages, ropes), and China Sinomach-Hi West Africa.
The businesses present expressed their satisfaction with Togo’s investment climate but underscored a few challenges, such as access to land, and bottlenecks at the customs level.
A few days before meeting with the Korean and Chinese firms, Minister Santos had met with an Indian delegation in the same framework.
Ayi Renaud Dossavi