BIA Togo, a subsidiary of the Moroccan banking group Attijariwafa, launched the Africa Development Club in Lomé on May 25, 2023. The Club was opened by the minister of investment promotion, Kayi Mivédor. 

Established in 2016 and present in countries that Attijariwafa covers, the Africa Development Club is a platform for networking and exchange among economic operators looking to invest or establish their businesses in a specific country. In Togo, it will bring together business people and decision-makers for enhanced investments.

Kayi Mivedor lauded the initiative saying it will promote Togo's inclusive and sustainable economic growth. "The Africa Development Club Togo comes on point. It will help create and accelerate synergy between the private and public sectors for strategic partnerships that will benefit the country. This initiative reinforces Togo's development dynamism and investment attractiveness," the minister of investment said. 

"We are here to promote Togo's investment opportunities and to involve committed Togolese companies, connecting them to established and finalized business corridors at the African level," said Mouna Kadiri, Director of Africa Development Club, Attijariwafa Group.

To date, the Africa Development Club has over 3000 members, according to the Moroccan group. They operate in key sectors including agro-industry, energy, telecoms, and construction. It is present in Egypt, Senegal, Mauritania, Tunisia, Gabon, Cameroon, Morocco, Côte d'Ivoire, Congo, Mali, and now Togo.

Esaïe Edoh

An international meeting focused on strengthening gender equality in Africa through legal reforms just closed in Lomé, Togo. Organized by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Togolese government, the two-day meeting opened on May 25. It gathered technical representatives from several African countries like Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Gabon, Kenya, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda, Togo, and more. 

There were officials representing various ministries, including those in charge of gender, labor and justice, central banks, and reform coordination units.

The meeting included talks and experience-sharing sessions, as well as expert panels featuring World Bank experts and key players from the private sector, like Ecobank. It aimed to enhance the understanding of participating nations on gender-related legal reforms, with emphasis on the effective implementation of these reforms and the private sector's perspective on their impact.

The event also aims to share global and regional best practices, as well as facilitate the exchange of experiences regarding the challenges and successes that lead to the adoption and implementation of effective reforms. 

The forum was opened by the Togolese minister in charge of women's promotion, Adjovi Lolonyo Apédoh-Anakoma, in the presence of her counterpart responsible for grassroots development, Myriam Dossou-d'Almeida, and Christopher Bailliet-Bleziri, IFC’s resident representative.

On the occasion, Apédoh-Anakoma said Togo was honored to have been picked as the host. She then underscored the country's efforts, and especially her ministry’s, to advance gender equality in Togo.

Amidst the increasing scarcity and costliness of international market financing, Togo is set to “prioritize spending” for the current year. As declared at the most recent Ministerial Council held on May 25, the country plans to enact a rectifying finance bill to manage its financial resources more effectively.

The Council acknowledged the challenges posed by the tightening of global lending conditions. It noted that “key central banks such as the U.S. Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank, and the Central Bank of West African States have introduced stricter monetary policies, which made securing funding from financial markets harder.”

Togo's financial plans for 2023 included raising CFA574 billion from the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) market. However, like many of its neighbors, the country was unable to meet its funding targets earlier this year. This shortfall prompted some Togolese officials to appeal to banking stakeholders for more support for Lomé's initiatives on the market. Though Togo recently witnessed a string of successes in the market, these victories may be short-lived, since the BCEAO, WAEMU’s central bank, could raise its key interest rates to mitigate inflation.

The specific sectors to be affected by Togo’s impending budget cuts remain undetermined. The initial budget was approximately CFA2,000 billion, with CFA623.4 billion (31.8%) assigned to social sectors. Almost half (48%) of the projected expenditure was earmarked for implementing Axis 1 of Lomé's 2025 roadmap; this axis aims to enhance social inclusion and human capital.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

During its latest council of ministers, held on 24 May, the Togolese government adopted a draft bill for the creation and management of the country’s protected areas. 

With this, Lomé has passed a new milestone in biodiversity protection, amid a rapidly-changing global context, relative to biodiversity conservation, and rising socioeconomic and ecologic challenges associated with its sustainable management. 

The new bill, which still needs the parliament’s approval, aims to adapt the existing legal framework to ensure better management of protected areas. Specifically, it will help set rules and regulations for creating and managing these areas. 

"Its adoption will allow our country to have a specific legal framework dedicated to protected areas in the perspective of their contribution to the achievement of sustainable development goals including project 35 of the government roadmap 2020-2025,"  the government indicated.

According to forecasts, Togo wants to expand its forest cover to 25%, by 2025. In recent weeks, Lomé took several steps in line with this goal. Among others, it adopted a bill to bolster efforts to tackle climate change, and before that, it was a decree to boost carbon storage. 

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Asky Airlines will lease two Boeing 737-8 MAX from AerCap Holdings. The Lomé-based Pan-African carrier recently signed the lease agreements with the Dublin-based plane rentals company, according to a press release issued by the latter. The planes should be delivered between June and August 2023. 

The announcement ceremony was attended by the CEOs of ASKY and AerCap, respectively Esayas W. Hailu and Aengus Kelly. The Board Chairman of Ethiopian Airlines Group and Aviation Advisor to Togo, Girma Wake, and board members of ASKY were also present. 

"We are delighted to welcome ASKY as a new customer to AerCap and particularly pleased to place the first MAX in Togo," said Aengus Kelly, the CEO of AerCap.

The two aircraft will reinforce ASKY’s fleet as the airline expands across the sub-region and the African continent. 

"I consider it an honor to introduce state-of-the-art B737-8 MAX aircraft into the ASKY fleet, which will support our wide regional network in our continuous endeavor to serve our esteemed customers," said Esayas W. HAILU, the CEO of ASKY.

“With the two new planes that are coming, there will be flights to Paris and Asia. Since Lomé is a strategic platform, and the sub-regional hub, it is important to increase the traffic and bolster the country’s strategy in the air sector,” he added. 

Presently, ASKY covers 27 destinations from Lomé, in 24 countries in West and Central Africa. The company claims 210 flights transporting 19,000 passengers per week. 

Ayi Renaud Dossavi & Esaïe Edoh

The Public Administration Savings and Credit Cooperative (CECAP) in Togo announced positive annual results at its ordinary general assembly, held on May 20 in Lomé, according to the Togolese Press Agency (ATOP). During the meeting, the cooperative's members reviewed and adopted its moral report, credit committee report, financial report, and supervisory board report.

Net Profit surges 11%

The entity posted a net profit of 68.2 million FCFA, up by about 11% compared to the year before.

The microfinance institution, last year, recorded 448 new memberships and closed 36 accounts for various reasons. 

A CFA230 million loan from BOA-Togo

In 2022, the cooperative received a loan of 230 million FCFA from BOA-Togo to support its activities. It also ranked first among public administration cooperatives for the second consecutive year.

Over the period reviewed, deposits slightly exceeded 1.017 billion FCFA, deposit balances reached 1.579 billion FCFA, while credits granted were 1.809 billion FCFA (up by 12.16% compared to 2021).

Besides reviewing the past exercise, the CECAP’s general assembly approved a 3.5% remuneration rate for cooperatives, put reserve allocation at 42.8 million FCFA, and allowed the Board to set the deposit rate for 2023 based on the results obtained.

At the end of the meeting, Nouwossan Komlan, who chairs the Board, lauded the various cooperative bodies and encouraged the cooperators to keep promoting the CECAP.

Established in 1991 by the Togolese public administration, the CECAP aims to help its members secure cheap loans and facilitate their financial transactions.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Lomé is hosting a Pan-African forum that gathered Designated National Authorities (DNAs) from 23 countries that adhere to the Pan-African Readiness initiative. The forum is steered by the Africa Adaptation Initiative (AAI). Launched on May 23, the forum aims to define strategies for better access to climate financing in African states.

During the 3-day meeting, the DNAs will deepen their understanding of the Green Climate Fund, so they can help their respective countries access climate financing. They will also learn more about climate change adaptation projects and share best practices or successful adaptation projects.

According to Togo's Minister of Environment and Forestry Resources, Foli-Bazi Katari, defining a common strategy is necessary due to Africa’s financial flows which are lower than needed to implement adaptation measures in all sectors, at the national level.

"In our respective countries, we must promote sectoral policies and governance mechanisms that encourage and support the attraction of national and international capital," he said.

Sandra Freitas, who heads the Sustainable Solution for Africa (SSFA) firm, added that "it is essential for countries to reflect deeply on how to mobilize the capital necessary for investing in climate change before the crisis intensifies and takes on proportions that we cannot control."

The ongoing Pan-African forum aligns with AAI’s project to support African leadership’s climate change adaptation efforts. 

Esaïe Edoh