The Kara Hotel is hiring a manager. The ministry of culture and tourism launched a call for applications to recruit the manager on February 17. 

The winning applicant will be tasked with coordinating and monitoring all the hotel’s activities, making sure that it is profitable and sustainable. He or she will also streamline the facility’s governance so it can get another star. This aligns with the ministry of tourism’s ambition to make the complex one of the best hotels in Togo and attract more tourists to the country.

A three-star hotel, the Kara Hotel is the largest hotel complex in the Kara region (Northern Togo). It was renovated last year.

Applicants have until April 3, 2023, to apply. 

Find the call for applications here.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

The Grassroots Development Support Program (PRADEB) officially ended yesterday, February 16. Supported by the Banque Ouest Africaine de Développement (BOAD), the State program lasted 10 years. 

The PRADEB led to the formation of 578 economic interest groups (EIGs), the installation of 200 multifunctional platforms, and over CFA2 billion was loaned to 1,200 young people as part of the initiative. Also, the program’s managers claimed that it created 8,660 sustainable jobs in the past decade.

In terms of completion, it is reported that the program was completed at 98.97% and 97.12%, technically and financially respectively. "The impact is real on the lives of communities," said Aristide Agbossoumonde, program coordinator. For its part, the BOAD said it was "available to help the government if it wishes to scale the program".

The PRADEB was launched 10 years ago to improve the living standards of grassroots populations and youths. Similar State projects launched around the same time include the Support Fund for Youth Economic Initiatives (FAIEJ), the Support Program for the Employability and Integration of Young People in Promising Sectors (PAEIJ-SP), and the National Agency for Grassroots Development (ANADEB).

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

The mandate of Aliou Dia, the Resident Representative of the UNDP in Togo, has come to an end. The UN official announced his departure during a meeting with the Togolese Prime Minister on February 16. 

Dia spent four years in Togo, and during his mandate, UNDP activities in Togo focused mainly on health, education, the environment, sustainable development, energy, decentralization, and security.

"I leave Togo with a sense of satisfaction. We supported the government in the implementation of the NDP, then we stood by the government during and after Covid-19, helping it to face Covid well. And Togo is one of the countries cited as an example in the management of this health crisis. We are at the government's side for the implementation of the roadmap," said Aliou Dia.

The outgoing Resident Representative is also confident that the incoming team will do better. “I dare to hope that everything we have achieved in four years will be better with the new team. That, I am convinced of.”

Earlier this week, on 14 February, the UN system and Togo signed a new cooperation framework for the period 2023-2027 - a framework in which the system will inject CFA150 billion.

Esaïe Edoh

Togolese ministers adopted on February 15 a decree that sets the conditions for laying the submarine fiber optic cable across the country. The decree was adopted during the council of ministers and it also covers the processes for securing necessary authorizations and certificates for laying the cables or building landing stations. 

Concretely, the decree aims to draw a regulatory framework that will enable the government to boost Togo’s economic activities, through the digitalization of services and the implementation of the Equiano Project, Google’s new submarine cable.

In Togo, the project is divided into two phases. First comes the construction of the cable. This is followed by its management and the resale of the international capacity to ISPs, in Togo and neighboring countries.

The government claimed that the decree’s implementation will, “among others, help preserve and protect the sea environment, and ensure that the activity (ed. note: laying the cable) is done in line with the country’s security standards and maritime sovereignty.”

Besides, it should also, according to the authorities, facilitate the concretization of most projects falling under the government’s 2020-2025 roadmap, and foster the development of communication networks.

Ayewoudan Akodah, the spokesman of the government, revealed that a landing station for the Equiano cable is being built in the country at the moment. The project, the official noted, aligns with the dynamic of regulating the cable’s deployment. 

It should be emphasized that Togo is the first African country to receive Google’s Equiano cable.

Esaïe Edoh

David Malpass, President of the World Bank Group, will step down by June 30, 2023. The 66-year-old announced the news on February 15 in a press release. In the latter, Malpass said he wanted to pursue “new challenges”, without giving more details.

“The Bank Group is fundamentally strong, financially sustainable, and well positioned to increase its development impact in the face of urgent global crises,” Malpass wrote in the release adding that “this is an opportunity for a smooth leadership transition”. 

David Malpass was appointed in 2019 by Donald Trump.  Some of the outgoing President’s critics accused him of being a climate skeptic. They see his resignation as a strong sign resulting from the World Bank’s ambition to better commit to climate issues.

For now, it is difficult to assess the impact of a possible refocusing of the Bretton Woods institution on climate issues. This is in a context where African countries wish to be more heard in the climate change battle and call for more support and climate equity from the world's major polluters, including the United States, the EU countries, and China.

It is worth noting that Togo’s President, Faure Gnassingbé, met with David Malpass last December in Washington. On the occasion, the African leader covered several topics, such as agriculture, mining, and climate change. This shows Africa’s growing interest in these issues.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

The World’s leading Organic Food Fair (BIOFACH) goes on in Nuremberg, Germany. Started on February 13, the fair ends on Feb 17th, and a Togolese delegation of about 10 biologic MSMEs.

The delegation showcases tropical products produced in Togo, like pineapple, cashew, and fonio. They will also build new partnerships to increase their exports to new countries and consolidate existing deals. 

"We came to this show for two main purposes. First, to see what others are doing in terms of packaging, and product presentations and then, leave with contracts. We want to approach potential customers to expand our market range," said Yorou Kesire, owner of Bodhi Foods.

BIOFACH takes place every year and gathers organic food actors who promote their products, focusing on recent trends and innovations in the sector. 

Esaïe Edoh

The Togolese State plans to allocate a budget of CFA1.1 billion to fishing and aquaculture this year. This is about half of the maritime economy ministry for 2023: CFA2.3 billion.

The funds will enable the Togo Aquaculture Project (PDAT) to continue. The latter is currently at the pilot stage and is being carried out at the Nangbeto Lake.

According to the ministry, the money will specifically serve to technically help fish farmers set floating cages, and organize workshops on aquaculture techniques. 

Besides, fishermen, in particular those working at Lomé’s fishing port, will receive support to boost their output. "In line with the 2022-2025 roadmap, meeting fishery needs remains a priority. We are working to create the conditions to boost national production towards meeting local demand," said Edem Tengue, minister of the maritime economy..

Togo’s aquaculture output stood at 1,151 tons of fish in 2022, against 730 tons in 2020.  However, last year 11,567 t of fish were caught through artisanal maritime fishing, 117 t through industrial fishing, and 6,300 t were caught in continental waters.

Esaïe Edoh 

The first batch of the Institut de formation en alternance pour le développement (IFAD-Aquaculture), the first aquaculture school of Togo, just graduated. 

The graduation ceremony took place last Friday (Feb 10) and was presided over by President Gnassingbé.  A total of 113 people graduated, including 27 females.

The program included three years of formal training followed by the creation of aquaculture farms. The graduates founded 19 cooperative businesses and 21 individual businesses on 26 different sites across the country.

During the ceremony, President Gnassingbé congratulated the trainers for their work and encouraged them to cultivate excellence. This, the leader added, will help build wealth and create jobs.

An initiative of the Presidency, the IFAD-Aquaculture is the first of 10 planned. It is located in Elevagnon, in the prefecture of East Mono. The academy currently has 120 learners.

Out of the 10 planned IFADs, three are already operational. They respectively offer aquaculture (Elavagnon), livestock (in Barkoissi), and construction (Lomé).

Ayi Renaud Dossavi