Togo First
Togo: President Gnassingbé lays the first stone for an agricultural mechanization center in Kpalime
The Togolese President, Faure Gnassingbé, laid the first stone for the Kpalimé Regional Agricultural Mechanization Center (CRMA) in Tové, on June 9, 2023. Kpalimé is the second town, after Kara, where such a facility is being built. Construction works for Kara’s began last April.
Equipped with modern tools and equipment, the CRMA of Kpalimé will streamline agricultural production processes, and consequently increase arable land and productivity in the West Plateaux region (where Kara is).
Like the Kara Center, it will also feature an agricultural machinery display area.
The project in Kpalimé stems from the Togo Regional Agricultural Producers Forum (FoPAT) that was held between January and April 2023. It will accelerate agricultural modernization in Togo.
It is worth noting that similar facilities are planned across the country, particularly in the maritime, central, and savanna regions.
Esaïe Edoh
Togo earned CFA17.53 billion from its extractive industries in 2020 (report)
Between January and December 2020, Togo earned 17.53 billion FCFA from its extractive industries. The figure was disclosed in the ITIE 2020 report for Togo, which was released just a few days ago.
The funds were levied mainly from big mining companies. They contributed CFA14.68 billion, while underground water operators contributed CFA1.19 billion, and construction material producers and small-scale miners contributed respectively CFA1.17 billion and 500 million FCFA
The earnings from extractive industries represented 1.5% of the country’s GDP in the year reviewed. According to the report, the extractive sector contributed 1.4% of the jobs created in 2020.
Over the past few years, Togo has introduced several reforms to ensure more transparency in its mining industry and double the latter’s contribution to national wealth. The reforms include launching a web portal for the mining cadaster where all mining contracts are posted. Lomé also launched the Mining Development and Governance Project (PDGM), a project which aims to better evaluate Togo’s mining potential.
Esaïe Edoh
Phosphate: Togo records a significant surge in output and sales
Togo’s phosphate industry recorded substantial growth –production and sales– in 2022. The surge was driven by soaring global prices for the commodity and several initiatives that Lomé launched to dynamize Togolese agriculture.
Phosphate production grew by 5.9% in 2022, reaching 1,541,772 tons. Sales rose from 1,386,811 tons to 1,583,180 tons, thus up 14%. The figures were released by the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO).
The growth was mainly spurred by an exceptional 116% increase in global raw phosphate prices over the year ended, extending an upward trend that took root in late 2020. The price per kilo indeed rose from 48.9 FCFA in Q1 2021 to 197 FCFA per kilo at the end of the year. This translates into an average high of 300 dollars per ton throughout the past year. Blessed manna for Togo’s phosphate company, the SNPT, which benefited from the rising dollar exchange rate.
This price increase is attributable to rising costs of inputs like ammonia, sulfur, energy, transportation, and agricultural harvests, experts explain, due to the war in Ukraine and the global economic recovery post-Covid.
Togo hadn’t recorded such high sales volumes since 1999. Based on last year’s performance, this year, the country could set a new sales record for the commodity.
The surge in Togo’s phosphate output and sales follows several steps taken by the country to revive its extractive industry. Togo is among the top 15 phosphate producers in the world, and it wants to bolster the local value chain by processing its ores locally.
In line with this ambition, Lomé recently signed (May 2023) several agreements with OCP Group (formerly Office Chérifien des Phosphates), the state-owned Moroccan phosphate fertilizer company. The agreements cover the establishment of a fertilizer plant in Togo, a project that was initially entrusted to Dangote Industries in 2019 but did not come through.
There is also NutriSource Pte Ltd, a Singaporean firm, which should soon kick off production at its new NPK fertilizer plant, located within the Adétikopé Industrial Platform (PIA). The factory is expected to produce 200,000 t of fertilizer per year.
Besides these, Lomé sealed a major mechanization deal with the Bonkoungou Group, on May 5, 2023. Under the deal, Bonkoungou Distribution (BKG) is to provide local farmers cutting-edge equipment at lower costs, via the leasing solution of BOA Togo.
For Togolese agriculture, which is at the heart of the government’s projects, these developments could mark a turning point.
Fiacre E. Kakpo
Togo: Adjafi Fair to be held from August 24 to September 10, in Agoè-Nyivé
This year, the Adjafi Fair, an event that showcases young entrepreneurs, will be held in Agoè-Nyivé, as usual. This edition, the eleventh, is scheduled to take place from August 24 to September 10.
The theme of the upcoming fair is "Agritech, a niche for innovation by young entrepreneurs at the service of agricultural development". As usual, it will feature exhibitions, and a roundtable for SMEs and SMIs, and dedicate a day to guest municipalities of honor.
A regional phase is also announced, including two shows: the Rice Show and the Local Juices and Beverages Show. The 18-day event will also feature a dozen shows.
The fair will be held at the Agoè-Nyivé high school.
Togo Publishes The 2020 Extractive Activities Report, Could Reintegrate EITI Soon
Togo just released its extractive activity report for the year 2020. The country published it within the 6-month deadline imposed by the board of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) from which it was temporarily suspended earlier this year.
Now that Togo has released the report, it should be reintegrated into the EITI as the latter’s board promised when the suspension was announced. Besides Togo, Kazakhstan, and Mexico were also temporarily suspended from the Initiative for failing to publish their 2020 extractive activity report by December 31, 2022.
The EITI is an international organization whose goal is to promote good transparency and accountability practices in the governance of the extractive sector. By publishing its extractive activity report, Togo shows it is committed to the Initiative’s principles.
Esaïe Edoh
Port Activity and Economic Growth in Togo are Strongly Correlated
In Togo, there is a strong correlation between port activity and overall economic growth. The remark was made by the country’s Minister of Maritime Economy, Edem Kokou Tengue, on June 8, World Ocean Day.
"Each time port volume increases by 1%, the gross domestic product of our country [Ed. note: Togo] increases by 0.05 percentage point," said the minister, citing a study conducted by his ministry. This shows how important the port and the blue economy are for the country.
The port, indeed, makes Togo a gateway through which many countries, especially landlocked countries in the Sahel, get their goods.
In Togo, 70% of economic activities are sea-dependent, and they generate over 75% of the country’s fiscal revenues.
The importance of maritime activities for Togo's economy underscores the necessity to preserve the marine environment and sustainably manage its resources. This approach is in line with the concept of the blue economy, which aims to promote economic growth, social inclusion, and the preservation or improvement of livelihoods while at the same time ensuring the environmental sustainability of oceans and coastal areas.
Ayi Renaud Dossavi
Togo takes part in the Africa CEO Forum 2023
Togo was represented at the Africa CEO Forum 2023 by its minister of investment promotion, Rose Kayi Mivedor. The event was held in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, from June 5 to 6, 2023.
On the occasion, the Togolese official met with a delegation of Canadian companies led by the president of Investment Quebec International, Hubert Bolduc. With them, she mainly covered bolstering the partnership between the Togolese and Canadian private sectors, as well as the investment opportunities offered to Canadian companies in the Gulf of Guinea.
The Africa CEO Forum is a pan-African meeting, organized by Jeune Afrique Media Group in collaboration with the International Finance Corporation. The forum aims to facilitate networking among African and international entrepreneurs, investors, and financial institutions, and to encourage discussion and brainstorming about economic and industrial issues that Africa faces.
Ayi Renaud Dossavi
BOAD Signs Framework Agreement with Smart Africa to Accelerate Digital Transformation
The West African Development Bank (BOAD) and Smart Africa Alliance inked a framework on June 7. The document, signed in Lomé, aims to speed up digital transformation in the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU).
In detail, the deal should foster e-commerce growth in the region, in Togo especially, and promote financial inclusion by supporting suitable investments in digital projects.
Serge Ekué, President, BOAD, and Lacina Kone, Managing Director, Smart Africa, both attended the signing ceremony. Ekué welcomed the partnership and highlighted the BOAD's commitment to finding concrete and innovative solutions to accelerate digital transformation in Africa.
The agreement also seeks to support the innovation ecosystem by popularizing the "startup toolkit" and strengthening capacities within the Smart Africa Digital Academy (SADA).
The Smart Africa Alliance was launched at the "Transform Africa" Summit in 2013, where member countries pledged to help drive the continent’s socio-economic development through ICTs. The Alliance has 38 member countries.
Lomé to Host the 2nd Edition of the Africa Financial Industry Summit
Lomé will host the second edition of the Africa Financial Industry Summit (AFIS) from November 13 to 14, 2023. The Togolese capital hosted the first edition last year as well.
The event will bring together more than 800 African finance actors who will discuss how to improve financial inclusion on the continent. These participants, primarily from banks, insurance companies, mobile money operators, fintech, and governing bodies, will also lay the groundwork for a true pan-African financial services industry at the Lomé summit.
This new edition, according to the organizers, will also record the participation of 30 finance ministers and central bank governors.
The AFIS Summit is organized by the Jeune Afrique Media Group and the AFRICA CEO FORUM. Its goal is to contribute to the successful implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Esaïe Edoh
Togo's Minister of Trade Seeks Commonwealth's Financial Support for Development Projects
The Togolese minister of trade Kodjo Adedze was in London on June 5 and 6 to attend the Commonwealth 2023 Trade Ministers Meeting held in the British capital.
During the meeting, Adedze asked the Commonwealth States to help finance the development projects and programs initiated by the Togolese government under its Togo 2023 roadmap.
"We want to change paradigms, pushing towards the valorization and local transformation of our raw materials for more added value while limiting external shocks as much as possible...We want to benefit from all Commonwealth programs that foster the economic and commercial development of Member States," declared the Togolese Minister.
He then emphasized Togo's willingness to "contribute its modest contribution to the noble ambition of the organization", leveraging its potentialities, knowingly raw materials, and human capital, especially women and the youth.
Togo officially joined the Commonwealth on June 25, 2022, after the Kigali Summit which was held in the same month. The move, according to Lomé, translates the country's ambition to build new partnerships and extend cooperation to more countries in several areas, including diplomatic, economic, commercial, educational, and cultural areas, among others.
Esaïe Edoh