From now on, the chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Togo (CCI-Togo) no longer has a salaried status. However, all professional expenses (trips) incurred by the chairman will be taken care of. This is one of the few reforms announced on Jan 30 by the Chamber’s special consular delegation. The reforms were presented to economic operators. 

As part of the new reforms disclosed by the CCI’s interim management team, the consular delegation will now have 75 elected members– 27 established at the regional level, and 48 at the national level. 

Also, the consular delegation is now required to present its annual report to the consular assembly. And the amount of its members’ contribution will be calculated based on their financial balance sheet filed with the OTR; this, according to Nathalie Bitho, head of the consular delegation, aims to “prevent unfairness in the payment of contribution by members.”

It is worth noting that the CCI’s interim management team was set up after the consular electoral process was halted, in September 2020, amidst an internal crisis.

Esaïe Edoh

Togo must strive to achieve food self-sufficiency to accelerate its economic development. Faure Gnassingbe, the Togolese president, voiced this opinion last Saturday, at Tsévié, as the second part of the Agricultural Producers Forum was closing.

We must feed ourselves, live from our agricultural activities, and provide for ourselves and our families to better invest in the economic development of the country, the leader said. 

According to him, efforts made so far by the government to this end are insufficient and must be increased for Togo to depend less on food imports. "The efforts we have been making for so many years have not yet allowed us to feed ourselves. We are forced to buy chicken and fish from outside, and often not of good quality. As we do not produce enough, we make do with these products that come from elsewhere, perhaps at low prices, but not always good for our health."

"When we think of tomorrow’s agriculture, what we think of is mechanization, irrigation, export, and we see bankers running after you (farmers) with financing offers. I am convinced that we will find ways to achieve this if we work together," President Gnassingbé added.

The Head of State and his collaborators, just like they did in Dapaong, met with various groups of the maritime region. The talks aimed to encourage farmers to produce more and foster inclusive management in the agricultural sector. They also covered some topics falling under the Togo 2025 Government Roadmap.

Esaïe Edoh

In Togo, the price of diesel and Jet A1 has fallen slightly. For diesel, the price is down to CFA775 from CFA850 FCFA per liter. As for jet fuel which is used by airplanes, its price has dropped from CFA654.41/liter to CFA615.41.

The change was disclosed in an interministerial order dated January 28, 2023. The latter was issued by the Ministers of Trade, Energy, and Transport, respectively Kodjo Adedze and Atcha-Dedji Affoh.

Prices of unleaded super fuel, kerosene, and two-stroke fuel did not change, however–CFA700, CFA650, and CFA788, respectively per liter.

While jet fuel’s price drop is good news for the Togolese aviation sector, it should be emphasized that the government still subsidizes petroleum products, to the tune of 230 CFA francs per liter on unleaded Super, and 239 francs per liter on diesel, and 157 CFA francs per liter on kerosene.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Lomé will host the 8th edition of the UEMOA Small and Medium Enterprises and Banks fair on Feb 7-10, 2023. The event’s theme is "Financing and Investment of UEMOA Small and Medium Enterprises, amidst the crises and changes of economies."

According to recent information, participants will be able to attend in person or virtually. "In the interest of always favoring very accessible participation, and without profit, at the UEMOA Small and Medium Enterprises and Banks fair, the hybrid mode will allow many SMEs to participate, online or on-site in their country," reads an official note, relayed by several media outlets.

"Business leaders already registered will be able to participate for free at the sites of Lomé, Ouagadougou, Niamey, Bamako, Cotonou, Abidjan, Dakar, and Guinea Bissau," the note adds.

High-level panels, meetings of the heads of SMEs from the UEMOA, project pitches, and B2B meetings will be hosted during the fair.

The UEMOA Small and Medium Enterprises and Banks fair was launched in 2015. It takes place once a year and has already been hosted in Ouagadougou (2015), Bamako (2016), Niamey (2017), Bobo-Dioulasso (2018), Korhogo (2019), Cotonou (2020), Ouagadougou (2021). The Lomé edition should have taken place last November but it was postponed.

Togo obtained CFA30 billion in its second issue on the WAEMU market this year. The country retained the amount out of CFA46 billion mobilized by regional investors. 

In detail, Lomé retained CFA16 billion from the issue of fungible treasury bills with a maturity period of 182 days. The remaining 14 billion breaks into 11 billion and 3 billion raised from fungible treasury bonds, maturing respectively over 5 and 3 years. 

Togo, it should be noted, had a target of 35 billion for the issue. Adding the proceeds of this second operation to the first, the country has raised CFA46 billion so far in 2023. This is out of an annual target of CFA574 billion.

Esaïe Edoh 

The Road and Rail Transport Office of Togo (DTRF) generated over CFA3.9 billion in revenues in 2021 (by the end of November). The entity disclosed the figure last Wednesday, Jan 25, 2023. 

The DTRF attributes the mobilization to several activities such as the registration of motor vehicles, the organization of the examination and issuance of driving licenses, technical inspections of vehicles, the issuance of registration cards, and document transfers.

In 2021, precisely 93,944 vehicles were registered, 28,581 4-wheelers and 65,363 2-wheelers and similar. 29,620 licenses (renewals, international licenses, duplicates, and driving rights) were issued. In the same year, 142,873 vehicles of all categories passed the technical inspection.

Progress over the years

From 2016 to 2021, the DTRF’s earnings almost doubled, from CFA2 billion to CFA3.9 billion. Except in 2017 when they fell slightly to CFA1.9 billion, the revenues went up over the period. They stood at CFA2.1 billion and CFA3.5 billion in 2018 and 2019, respectively.

Meanwhile, the number of registered vehicles rose as well, from 64,120 in 2016 to 93,944 in 2021 (+46%). 

Esaïe Edoh

The World Bank’s branch in Togo launched this week, consultations with various development actors, towards the elaboration of its new Country Partnership Framework (CPF) with the West African State. The new document will cover the years 2023 to 2027.

The recently-launched consultations involve deputies, the private sector, civil society organizations, the media, women and youth organizations, academics, and think tanks, among others. They follow the first phase of consultations launched last year. 

"During the first phase, we met with the Government, the Federation of Municipalities of Togo, and technical and financial partners. This has already allowed us to have some guidance on the major priorities to be taken into account," said Fily Sissoko, representative of the World Bank in Togo. "This time, we also intend to travel to the interior of the country to meet with all the other actors and gather their opinions on the priorities at the regional and local levels that need to be taken into account," he added.

The new series of consultations will close on February 3, 2023. With them, the World Bank aims to ensure that its new country partnership framework with Togo “remains well-aligned with the government’s top priorities, now and in the future.”

Throughout the consultations, participants will discuss the new framework, toward ensuring that “the institution’s decisions meet expectations and are in line with the country’s vision of development, as set out in the government’s 2020-2025 Roadmap.”

As part of its previous Partnership Framework (2017 - 2022) with the country, the World Bank committed $1.28 billion to Togo. The funds served to finance several projects falling under three main areas of intervention in Togo’s national development strategy. These include private sector performance and job creation; inclusive public service delivery to strengthen human capital; and environmental sustainability and resilience.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

The Togolese government plans to spend CFA25 billion on water supply projects this year, according to the 2023 finance bill. The sum is 8% higher than that spent in 2022: CFA23 billion. 

Just like in 2022, several projects should be launched or accelerated this year. These include, for example, the national clean water supply plan or the Support Program for Vulnerable Populations (PAPV). 

Launched in February 2021, the national clean water supply plan involves installing over 300 hydraulic pumps in Northern Togo. This will be done via the PASSCO, a project to improve sanitary conditions in schools and rural areas of the Kara and Savanes regions.

The PAPV, for its part, is a project that aims to provide the most vulnerable people with drinking water. It should enter a new development stage, with the financial and technical support of the EU and China. 

There is also another project covering Lomé and its surroundings which should be accelerated. This is a project that was at the heart of a meeting held in December 2022 during which Togo’s financial partners committed to providing over €230 million.

These various projects align with the ambitions of the Togolese government to achieve a coverage rate of 85% by 2025 and 100% by 2030. According to recent data from the ministry of water and rural hydraulics, the supply rates in rural and urban areas are 68% and 58%, respectively.

Esaïe Edoh