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

The Togolese municipality of Doufelgou 3, located southwest of Niamtougou in the north of the country, validated its Municipal Development Plan (PDC) last week.

With an estimated budget of 1.39 billion CFA francs, the PDC spans five years, going from 2023 to 2028. The 183-page document includes seven (7) major programs, 18 projects, and 122 activities. According to ATOP, the plan was validated on June 2, in Alloum, the municipality's chief district.

All stakeholders concerned by the PDC attended the validation meeting. Among them were the municipal council, heads of decentralized state services, NGO leaders, traditional chiefs, and community leaders.

On the occasion, Hassim Maliawaï, Regional Director of Planning for the Kara region, reminded the local authorities of their obligation to plan their development, per the country’s decentralization law.

For her part, Abla Yassim, the mayor of the Doufelgou 3 municipality, lauded the PDC’s validation, highlighting its importance regarding strategic planning in her municipality.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

The Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayor Foundation (SEA Foundation) will help implement reforms and improve the courses offered at the University of Lomé. The two parties recently signed a partnership on June 5, 2023, in Lomé where the Ex-Footballer Adebayor himself inked the partnership on behalf of his foundation while the university was represented by UL President Dodzi Kokoroko.

Under the agreement, the former soccer player will finance the construction of an amphitheater that will bear his name and a stand on the newly built football field of the university. He will also provide support to university startups in the fields of innovation and technology.

The deal also extends to the UL's National Institute of Youth and Sports, where it is expected that Sheyi Adebayor will give classes. Moreover, the former Madrid Star should leverage his network to help UL students to get internships and job opportunities.

According to Dodzi Kokoroko, the partnership "will leave a strong impact on the student community as Shéyi Emmanuel Adébayor remains an icon, a model of success for Togolese youth."

Esaïe Edoh

Lomé is hosting a 4-day assessment meeting that could lead to the adoption of the ECOWAS Interconnected Management System for Goods in Transit (SIGMAT). Customs officers from eight West African countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo) are taking part in the meeting. 

The system is financially and technically backed by the World Bank. It is a solution that aims to make transit declaration easier among the ECOWAS States. If adopted, the tool will be tested in the eight countries represented at the ongoing meeting, and later expand to others in the region.

"This meeting aims not only to evaluate the interconnection of the computer systems of the customs administrations, but also to examine the draft agreements and framework instructions to make SIGMAT effective on the corridors of the eight countries, and soon on all corridors of our sub-region," said Essien Kakra Kwawo, Commissioner of Customs and Indirect Rights of the Togolese Revenue Office (OTR).

Specifically, the SIGMAT will enable interconnected customs services to instantly share information on goods in transit. This should ensure transparency at all levels. According to customs actors, the mechanism is beneficial to both customs administrations and economic operators as it significantly cuts waiting times and delays at borders. 

Esaïe Edoh 

This year, the Togolese government plans to pre-finance the purchase of fertilizers for local farmers with over CFA800 million. The distribution campaign kicked off on Saturday, June 3, in Sada (Tchaoudjo Prefecture), setting the stage for the 2023-2024 agricultural campaign.

Lomé intends to provide the poorest farmers with NPK 15-15 and urea fertilizers through the Togo National Food Security Agency (ANSAT).

The move, a response to farmers' requests according to ANSAT, follows a successful pilot last year. At the time, the government released CFA500 million to pre-finance the purchase of over 1,388 tons of fertilizer. As in the previous campaign, the beneficiaries of this prefinancing can repay in kind, the value of the received fertilizers.

According to the General Director of ANSAT, Ouro-Koura Agadazi, this new operation aims to support producers and protect them against usurers. 

This operation paves the way for the official campaign for the sale of subsidized fertilizers.

Esaïe Edoh

Togolese authorities recently inaugurated a new slaughterhouse in Hemazo, in the Lacs prefecture. The inauguration ceremony took place on June 2, in the presence of Sandra Ablamba Johnson, the Minister and Secretary-General of the Presidency, Myriam Dossou d'Alméda, Minister of Base Development, and Aquéréburu Coffi Alexis, the Mayor of the Lacs 1 municipality. 

According to Johnson, the slaughterhouse was promised by the Head of State. It will serve the Lacs, Yoto, Vo, Bas Mono prefectures, and border localities, including Grand Popo in Benin. Built under the Support Program for Vulnerable Populations (PAPV), the unit includes offices, a cold room, a slaughter room, a meat sales room, an animal treatment room, and sanitary facilities.

The project’s beneficiaries expressed their gratitude during the inauguration ceremony. They believe the "jewels" will spur the growth of the region’s meat industry.

Besides Hemazo, new slaughterhouses are being built in Kpalimé, Sokodé, and Kara. These projects and others upcoming in Atakpamé, Niamtougou, and Dapaong, align with the government’s efforts to develop the meat industry.

Togo needs about $10 million per year to finance a project that supports people living with HIV (PLHIV) and tuberculosis (TB) patients.

The amount was disclosed in a study ordered by the Permanent Secretariat of the National Council for the Fight Against AIDS (CNLS). The study report was validated on Friday, June 2, in Lomé, during a workshop organized in collaboration with UNAIDS and the World Food Program (WFP).

The report evaluates the feasibility and cost of the project. "It will first be a resource mobilization document, an advocacy document that could be presented to traditional partners," said Damien Amoussou, president of the study’s steering committee.

Approximately 75% of TB patients and PLHIV are considered vulnerable. To integrate them into a national social protection system, just over $10 million each year would be needed to support them, stated Agossou K. Kokou, a National Consultant, presenting the study results.

For now, the project is expected to initially last three years and cost $30 million.

While the study primarily focused on the Maritime and Plateaux regions, considered to have the highest HIV prevalence, the initiative covers the entire territory. In these two regions alone, over 29,000 PLHIV have been identified out of an estimated total of 80,000 across the country.

In addition to traditional partners, actors in the fight against HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis plan to mobilize international support, including the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. The Fund has already announced financing of CFA74 billion for the period 2023-2025.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Last Friday, Togo successfully raised CFA31 billion ($56 million) on the West African public securities market. Lomé raised the funds through a simultaneous issue of Treasury Bonds and Bills (BAT and OAT).

According to the Umoa-Titres agency, Togo secured CFA26 billion with the bills and the remaining CFA5 billion came through the bonds. The former will mature over 182 days and the latter over 3 and 5 years. 

Overall, submissions to the issue, according to the agency’s report, amounted to CFA41 billion, a coverage rate of 138.44%.

The report also indicates that of the 31 billion raised, 11 billion came from Togolese investors.

Since the year began, Togo has raised, including this recent operation, CFA264 billion on the regional market. That is about half of its annual target–CFA574 billion. 

Esaïe Edoh