Last week, President Faure Gnassingbé kicked off a project to install 50,000 autonomous and smart solar street lamps in Kadjanga, a village located in the Binah prefecture (northern Togo). The project aligns with Togo’s ambition to achieve 100% electrification by 2030. It will cover 4599 communities across the country, with emphasis on the Savanes region.

The solar street lamps initiative falls under the Rural Public Solar Electrification Program (PEP'S Rural). It will improve the lighting system in border areas, localities electrified by solar kits, as well as social infrastructures, such as man-powered pumps, schools, health centers, and markets. Already, the Togolese Agency for Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy (AT2ER) has carried out and validated a census of all the country's infrastructure in this framework.

Installing the solar street lamps will cost €40 million (about CFA26 billion). France is the financial backer and in April 2021 it signed with Togo four agreements–including two aimed at boosting access to clean energy in the African country. The agreements were signed while President Gnassingbé was in Paris for an official visit. 

Sunna Design, a French firm, is in charge of implementing the project, and it will collaborate with local SMEs.

These 50,000 streetlights add to over 15,000 others of the ISSL+ model installed in villages situated in the prefectures of Binah, Oti, Oti Sud, Tone, Kpendjal Ouest, and Tandjouaré.

Some similar initiatives launched in Togo to increase access to electricity include the Cizo project (where individual solar kits are provided to households), the Blitta solar photovoltaic power plant, the Tinga Fund, and mini solar power plants in the country's villages.

Esaïe Edoh 

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Togo (CCI-Togo) officially launched Lon’Kèlèw, a project fostering the digitalization of local SMEs. The initiative is carried out in partnership with Expertise France, with the support of the French Development Agency (AFD), through the 11th European Development Fund (EDF), and the European Union.

Initially called DigiTin'Ga, the Lon'Kèlèw project will train entrepreneurs and ensure the digital transition of 50 SMEs, mostly run by women and young people. Businesses will be selected based on their digital transformation capacity and their digitalization needs.

"Given our actual context, amid the recovery of economies that have been hard hit by crises and security issues, the most resilient firms are those that open up internationally and have opted to make the digital part of their business model," said the president of the special consular delegation of the CCI-Togo, Nathalie Bitho.

Through digitalization, businesses will better operate and improve their offers, and this should allow them to better cope with shocks as well. The Secretary General of the Ministry in Charge of Trade, Yakpey Comlan Nomadoli, said: "This process will eliminate geographical barriers while improving communication with foreign customers and business partners."

In the long run, the Lon’Kèlèw project should boost the digital capacities of 500 companies in Togo.

Togo obtained on April 25, a €70 million contribution from the EU, for two Team Europe Initiatives (TEIs) aimed at supporting agro-businesses, energy, and connectivity in the West African country. Two agreements–one for €30 million and the other for €40 million–were signed in Brussels in this framework, by Jutta Urpilainen, European Commissioner for International Partnerships, and Victoire Tomegah Dogbé, Togo’s Prime Minister. The TEIs are part of the EU’s Global Gateway. 

According to the EU statement announcing the financing, it was set up in partnership with France, Germany, and the European Investment Bank (EIB). Also, the source indicates that the €30 million contribution will help develop agro-industries and enhance the management of natural resources, while the €40 million is a budget support program that will support access to basic social services, agriculture, and decentralization.

I welcome the signing of these two agreements which materialize the convergence between Togo's government roadmap and the EU's "Global Gateway" strategy. Our ambition is to accelerate the integration of Togolese agriculture into global value chains by relying on sustainable energy and strengthening connectivity per the vision of HE Faure Essozimna Gnassingbé, President of the Togolese Republic, said the Togolese PM.

Regarding the TEIs, the first one, entitled Sustainable Agribusiness for Togo, aims to improve agricultural productivity and natural resource conservation. It builds on pineapple and cashew value chains to enhance food security, create jobs and preserve biodiversity. The second initiative, Energy and Connectivity for Togo, aims to achieve 100% electrification by 2030, 50% of which will come from renewable energy sources.

One of Togo's institutional partners, the EU supports the country’s agriculture, energy, and education sectors, but also its decentralization process. A few days ago, on the sideline of the FOPAT, an agricultural forum held in Kara (northern Togo), the EU announced a financing of over CFA6 billion to support agriculture in Togo. 

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Lomé raised CFA33 billion on the regional money market on April 24, 2023. The amount is three billion or 10% more than the country was seeking. 

According to the report of the securities market, the Togolese treasury obtained CFA26 billion through fungible treasury bills which mature over 182 days. The remaining CFA7 billion came from 3-year fungible treasury bonds.

The report further indicates that 12 investors subscribed to Togo's issue, bidding up to CFA40 billion. This represents a subscription rate of 133.34% for the operation. 

It is the second consecutive time, since the year began, that Togo exceeds its target on the regional stock market. It raised CFA32 billion, or CFA2 billion more than it was seeking, in its previous issue, which closed on April 7.

Esaïe Edoh

Since it launched in April 2022, the Tinga Fund has reached over 100,000 people in the Togolese regions of Kara and Savanes. The figure was disclosed by the country’s Presidency last week, after a meeting between President Gnassingbe and some of the Fund’s beneficiaries in Pagouda (in the Kara region). 

The Minister Delegate to the President, in charge of Energy and Mines, Mila Aziable, was also present. On the occasion, she provided more details about the project, its objectives, results, and prospects.

Tinga is a presidential initiative that makes it easier for people in Togo to have electricity. In detail, low-income households can connect to the grid by paying the connection fee (CFA100,000 or about $170) in installments. The initial payment is CFA1,000 and the rest can be paid over four (4) to 10 years. 

During the meeting, Gnassingbe noted, "with satisfaction", the impacts of the project on the living conditions of the people and the social sectors of the Kara region.

The leader, however, mentioned the various issues–security threats mainly–that the region faces and warned its people to be more prudent, and to work to preserve peace, without which no development project can thrive. 

"Everything we do today can be called into question. We are facing security threats in the sub-region. I invite you to be extremely vigilant because no one is safe from terrorism. We are all concerned by this situation. We must preserve peace and security in our country," he declared. 

For its pilot phase, the Tinga Fund was allocated a budget of CFA3 billion. Its end goal is to increase the electrification rate in the Savanes region from 22% to 31% and in the Kara region from 35% to 50% in 10 years.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

In Togo, the Dogta-Lafiè hospital, formerly Saint Peregin, will be inaugurated tomorrow, April 26. The inauguration, according to the government, will be chaired by President Gnassingbe, as part of celebrations for Togo’s 63rd independence anniversary.

Since March 1, 2023, the hospital has been offering imaging, radiography, and mammography services. After its inauguration, more departments should come online. 

Located at the northern entrance of Lomé, the Dogta-Lafiè hospital specializes in the fields of Medicine, Surgery, and Obstetrics (MCO). With its high-end equipment, it should "serve a significant proportion of the population, and attract people who weren’t used to going to hospitals, due to its affordable pricing and care offer.”

In its first year of activity, the hospital should receive at least 80,000 patients, according to the National Social Security Fund (CNSS) which supports the project. 

In June 2022, SOGEHP, which runs the hospital, opened its shareholding, hoping to increase its capital in the process. At the time, 49.975% was made available to interested investors, and the operation aimed to bring the hospital’s total capital to CFA25.01 billion.

Esaïe Edoh

The construction of the Regional Center for Agricultural Mechanization (CRMA) in Kara, northern Togo, began last week, on April 20. President Faure Gnassingbe laid the foundation stone for the facility in Tchitchao, where it is located.

The CRMA is being built on a 3-ha piece of land. It will be equipped with modern materials and equipment to facilitate the various stages of agricultural production and increase the exploitable surface area and productivity.

The premises will also have several facilities including an exhibition area for agricultural equipment, an administrative building, accommodation for technicians, a warehouse for storing finished products, a spare parts store, and a technical department for maintenance and training of technicians.

This infrastructure will help speed up agriculture’s modernization in Togo. Five more are set to be built in other regions of the country. 

Yielded by a public-private partnership, the CRMAs align with Lomé’s goal to boost productivity and entrepreneurship in agriculture. 

"We are materializing the promise of the Head of State to agricultural producers. This mechanization center responds to the will of the President of the Republic to increase agricultural production as part of the project to improve the working conditions of producers and agricultural productivity," said Antoine Lékpa Gbégbéni, the minister of agriculture.

Esaïe Edoh

From now till June, Togo will record heavy rains and could face some flooding. Since March, early and heavy rains have been recorded throughout the country, especially in Lomé, the capital. According to hydrometeorological forecasts for April-May-June, the situation is not expected to subside any time soon, the Minister of Civil Protection revealed on 19 April.

Yark Damehame, Togo’s minister of security, warned that the rains could cause flooding and an overflowing of natural and artificial retention basins, as well as rivers and water bodies. This could damage properties and threaten nearby communities.

Already, the recent rains have damaged some properties and to tackle the situation, the National Agency for Civil Protection has been carrying out drainage operations in several areas. 

"Key stakeholders and populations are invited to mobilize and be extremely vigilant," Damehane warned, stressing the need for a coordinated response to address the risks associated with the current weather conditions.