Togo’s President, Faure Gnassingbe, was in Niamey on November 25, with other African leaders. They gathered for a meeting dedicated to Africa’s industrialization. The meeting follows an extraordinary summit of heads of State and government of the African Union (AU) on the AfCFTA.

In Niger, the leaders examined new policies to speed up Africa’s industrialization and strengthen the growth of regional chains of value.

"Industrialization and the free flow of value-added products on an integrated market are essential for our development," said Faure Gnassingbé on his arrival in Niamey.

A day before, November 24, Kodjo Adedze, Togo’s Minister of Trade, revealed the country’s progress in terms of industrialization, during the Review of economic transformation policies. Adedze especially talked about a site, at the Industrial Platform of Adetikope (PIA), that will receive several companies, with about 20 deals already sealed.  

Esaïe Edoh

Faure Gnassingbe, the Togolese President, gave an audience to Ecobank’s new Managing Director, Jeremy Awari, last Thursday, November 24. According to the Togolese presidency, the Kenyan was part of a delegation from the banking group that its board president, Alain Nkontchou, led.

During the meeting, Jeremy Awari reiterated Ecobank’s ambition to bolster its partnership with Togo; notably, it wants to support the country’s economic development strategy, the Presidency reported.

"We have discussed with the Head of State, the partnership between Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) and Togo. We have an ongoing, fluid, and important relationship with Togo, which is home to Ecobank's headquarters and most of our management. We would like more than ever to play the role of capital provider and support to the Togolese economy which is doing well given everything that is happening in the region," said Alain Nkontchou, at the end of the hearing.

The new MD of Ecobank was announced last September. He takes the place of the Nigerian Ade Ayeyemi, who was heading the group since 2015 but retired this year. 

Based in Lomé, Ecobank is present in 33 African countries.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Lomé hosted an information meeting on the development of projects for the mobilization of climate finance, on 24 November 2022. The meeting was organized in the framework of Togo’s preparation program for accessing the  Green Climate Fund (GCF). The organizers were the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) and the Togolese Ministry of Environment and Forest Resources.

The workshop brought together various climate change experts and actors fighting the phenomenon. The former told the latter about strategies to raise funds they need for their environmental protection projects. Specifically, they were told the requirements needed for accessing the GCF. 

To get climate financing, notably the GCF’s funds, applicants need well-prepared projects that meet the criteria set by lenders, since the major roadblock for accessing financing is directly linked to the lack of bankable and economically viable projects, according to the resident representative of the GGGI in Togo, Benin, and Ghana, Innocent Kabenga.

A few days ago, let’s recall, Togo was at the COP27 in Egypt. There, Togolese representatives complained about the reticence of polluting countries to mobilize funds to compensate small polluters that suffer irreparable damage caused by climate change. 

Esaïe Edoh

In Togo, the Agency in charge of Rural Electrification and Renewable Energies (AT2ER) wants to install 70,000 solar street lamps. It launched last week, on Nov 14, a call for expression of interest targeting firms that can pre-finance, install and operate the equipment, under a Public Private Partnership.

"The objective of this pre-qualification process is to define the conditions for pre-qualifying private companies that show an interest in supplying, installing, operating, and maintaining a batch of 70,000 solar streetlights sustainably, under a PPP partnership," AT2ER said.

The call for expressions of interest ends on 14 December 2022.

Let’s emphasize that solar energy has been drawing more and more attention in Togo, in recent years. This week, for example, Togo signed a financing agreement with Abu Dhabi Exports, which will lend the country $25 million to expand Blitta’s solar power plant, the largest in West Africa.

This week, a facultative insurance seminar was held in Baguida (Lomé). Launched on November 21, the meeting’s theme was: “Regulation of facultative insurance, scope of guarantees, and compensation procedures”. Facultative insurance covers risks to which goods are exposed while being transported (by sea, land, or air). 

The seminar was organized by the Supervisory Authority of the insurance sector and the National Directorate of Insurance. It mainly aimed to let concerned stakeholders review the regulatory evolutions in the maritime transport sector.

Among others, these stakeholders acquired knowledge that should help them better understand the ins and outs of facultative insurance management and existing regulation, as well as recent amendments to this regulation.

"The birth of insurance originated in the development of transport, particularly maritime transport, which fostered the emergence of other modes with the development of road, rail, and air routes," explained the Director of Cabinet of the Minister of Economy and Finance, Kossi Tofio.

It is worth noting that Togo wants to become a trade hub in West Africa, notably by leveraging its port’s activity.

Last year, the port of Lomé–West Africa's fourth largest container port–recorded 1,962,304 TEUs, against 1,725,270 TEUs in 2020 (+13.7%).

Mawulolo Yomo, PhD student, Life and Environmental Sciences, is the only Togolese among the 20 women scientists selected for this year’s edition of the Sub-Saharan African Young Talents program. The list was recently published by the program’s promoters, Fondation l’Oréal and UNESCO. 

The 20 women were picked by a jury, for their scientific achievements, out of 425 applicants from 16 countries. This is the first time a Togolese is picked since 2020 when the program was launched.

Yomo was picked for her work on seawater intrusion dynamics in the Coastal sedimentary Basin of Togo. “I was inspired and encouraged by many female mentors throughout my career,” she commented.

Among others, the young scientist will get a €10,000 grant to carry out her project, and several leadership training sessions to grow personally and professionally. 

The awards ceremony is set to take place on December 1, 2022, in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi