The BOAD will soon get about €350 million (nearly CFA230 billion) from Société Générale and JP Morgan. The funds guaranteed by the World Bank’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) will support the BOAD’s 2021-2025 strategic plan. 

In detail, out of the amount, around €200 million will go to the WAEMU’s public sector and the rest (€150 million) will be injected into the private sector.

Regarding the financing the public sector will get, half of the sum will refinance concessional loans provided by the BOAD while the other half will be used to fund new projects. Financial support to the private sector will go to SMEs via refinancing lines provided to commercial banks, and short and medium-term projects 

Let’s note that besides JP Morgan and Société Générale, the BOAD should also get €50 million from the OPEC fund. The money will be used to finance the Bank’s series of short term projects, notably in refinancing lines and agricultural campaigns. 

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

The Siemens’ SGT-800 gas turbine ordered for the Kekeli power plant has been delivered successfully. 

In a statement published on 30 September 2020, Siemens Energy announced: “As part of the 65 MW combined cycle power plant project under development in the Republic of Togo, Siemens Energy had the pleasure to deliver an SGT-800 gas turbine to the Kékéli Efficient SA site.” The turbine had left Finspang port in Sweden at the end of May. 

According to Marcus Nelle, Siemens’ senior vice president of sales for Africa, “we are proud to be following through on our commitment to the people of Togo to provide affordable and reliable power sources while also moving toward an environmentally sustainable and financially accessible baseload energy production.”

The plant will boost the stability of Togo’s power grid. It aligns with the country’s goal to achieve universal electrification by 2030. 

Valued at CFA65.4 billion, the Kékéli project also aligns with the 2018-2022 national development project. It is financed based on a public-private partnership model. The state of Togo and Eranove have signed a concession agreement for its construction and operation. 

Séna Akoda

In Africa, more than eight out of ten Covid-19 cases are asymptomatic or show few symptoms, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). 

“Since 20 July, the region has seen a steady decline in new COVID-19 cases,” and  “80% of the cases are asymptomatic,” the international health body said. 

Across the continent, few people fall ill (and even fewer are reported to be severe cases) or show symptoms of COVID-19 infection. This could explain Africa’s resilience to the virus and the low mortality rate recorded compared to other regions (the number of deaths in Africa is 80 times lower than the figure reported in the US). 

According to some experts, notably the WHO, this could be due to the structure (demographic and urbanistic) of African societies. Also, available data suggests that young people, who are more resilient to the virus, are the most infected on the continent. This is in a context where it happens that the illness gets more severe the older the infected individuals are. In Africa however, the median age of the population is 20 years (19 years in Togo), and 41% of the African population is below 15 years old. 

It is also worth noting that population density in African countries is far less significant than in other regions (despite multiple alarmist narratives about demographics and overpopulation). This could mitigate contact and subsequently the propagation of the virus. Lastly, the WHO says Africa's warm and humid climate could be among the factors explaining the decline of COVID-19 cases the continent records. 

Vigilance is key

Nevertheless, the WHO warns against complacency, urging African governments to be cautious and to use localized and targeted responses like it was done in Togo, by the country’s COVID-19 response coordination team. 

At present, over 1.47 million cases have been reported in Africa and 35,500 people have succumbed to the virus. Togo is one of the least affected in West Africa (in absolute value), with 1,749 cases and 47 deaths reported. 

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

By presidential decree, Victoire Tomégah Dogbé has been appointed as Togo’s new Prime Minister. She is the first woman to ever hold the title in the country. 

She succeeds Komi Sélom Klassou who had led the government since 2015. 

Mrs. Tomégah Dogbé is presently the director of the cabinet of the President of the Republic and the minister of grassroots development and youth. 

Ayi Renaud Dossavi