Last Tuesday, the World Bank approved a $12 billion aid plan to enable developing countries to purchase and distribute potential COVID-19 vaccines. 

In effect, the money should be used by the countries to “finance the purchase and distribution of Covid-19 vaccines, tests, and treatments for their citizens.” 

According to David Malpass, who heads the institution, this is the technical support that should allow beneficiaries to distribute “safe and efficient” vaccines on a large scale. 

While the funds will undoubtedly be helpful to many countries, some observers question their pertinence in sub-Saharan Africa given that the pandemic’s impact in this region is minimal compared to others. Africa is indeed the least affected by the virus so far.  

It should be highlighted that vaccines should, according to WHO, not be available on a large scale before mid-2021. At the moment, only one vaccine (Russia’s Sputnik V) has been officially approved and seven others are in the last phase of testing.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Instructed by president Faure Gnassingbé, a performance contract was signed by 33 ministers of the Dogbe government, to achieve goals set under the new five year (2020-2025) strategic roadmap. 

Under the terms of the contract, the ministers have to report their actions and progress regularly. 

The signing marked the end of a seminar started by the government at the beginning of the week. The latter was aimed at enabling the new government to get acquainted with major projects. 

Yesterday, the government met to learn more about the budget program which also prioritizes high performance. 

Let it be recalled that major projects under the 2020-2025 roadmap include boosting social inclusion, creating jobs, and reinforcing institutions. 

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

After recording a good performance last quarter, Togo announced it will seek CFA25 billion on the regional financial market next October, 23rd. 

The tender notice relative to the first operation of this quarter was published on October 13 by the UMOA Securities agency. The funds will be raised through a simultaneous issuance of fungible treasury bonds. 

In detail, these are bonds with maturity periods of respectively 5 and 7 years, and  6.4% and 6.5% interest rates. The nominal value for both issues is CFA10,000. The money raised will finance the 2020 national budget. 

It should be recalled that in Q4 2020, Togo hopes to mobilize CFA60 billion on the regional financial market, against CFA218 raised in the previous quarter (and CFA88 billion in Q3 2019). 

Séna Akoda

The partial restriction on imports of frozen chicken is a boon to local poultry sales. This was revealed by the former minister of agriculture, Noel Bataka, in a written message to a deputy. 

From May 18, 2020, to July 12, 2020, local poultry sales soared from 3 tons to nearly 7 tons per week.

According to the former minister, the increase is due to an incentive pushing for partial substitution of imported poultry with local poultry, initiated after commitments made by poultry importers. 

Without giving further details, Bataka said the incentive, which caused demand for poultry to rise, was the catalyst for a new investment dynamic translated into a greater interest of entrepreneurs in local poultry production. 

Séna Akoda

Covid-19 should seriously stymie remittances to Africa, causing a shortcoming of $18 billion according to the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). The figure was disclosed last week in a report published by the organization and titled Preserving remittances during Covid-19.

In the document, the UN body highlights the severe impact the pandemic has on remittances, due to difficulties experienced by migrants in host countries that are most affected by the virus and the recession it induced. 

“Covid-19 has severely stymied fund transfers to Africa and they should fall byb21% in 2020,” said Stephen Karingi, head of the trade and regional integration division at UNECA. 

Let’s recall that remittances are a great help for Africans at home and their reduction could severely affect those in a dire need of them. In recent years, they grew so much that they exceeded the foreign direct investments (FDIs) and development aid that the continent received. 

Regarding Togo, in 2018 the remittances from its diaspora were estimated at $500 million or about 8.5% of the GDP, according to the World Bank. 

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

The unique social regime project is back on the government’s table. This is a project which is aimed at facilitating social inclusion throughout the 2020-2025 period. It was one of the main topics discussed during the government's first seminar held on Monday. 

Once concretized, the project should enable “better distribution of social expenditures through a singly window for providing social services to the poorest.” 

According to credible sources, the unique social regime will be established by the ministry of grassroots development. Already approved by the parliament, the project includes a biometric identification component that will help make sure that no one is left out. 

Let’s emphasize that social inclusion is the greatest priority of the first government led by PM Victoire Tomégah-Dogbé over the next five years. 

Séna Akoda

Togo’s annual poultry output should triple to 60,000 t by the end of 2023 and that of eggs should reach 250 million units, against around 188 million now. The positive projections mark the continuation of a trend observed since 2010. Indeed, from 2010 to 2019, the country’s poultry output soared from over 8 million heads to more than 26 million heads. 

The figures were reported by the former minister of agriculture and fisheries (MAPAH), Noël Koutera Bataka, in response to a mail sent by deputy Gerry Komandega Taama about the recent import ban on frozen poultry. 

In the 2018-2022 national development plan, Bataka said, the poultry sector is identified as a strategic sector to promote the industries of meat processing and create massive jobs in the country. According to projections, the poultry sector could generate up to 150,000 jobs by 2025. So, the government is undertaking various initiatives to structure and support actors of this sector to achieve the set targets. 

Some of such initiatives include the creation of husbandry training institutes and the MIFA to improve banks’ financing to poultry.

Also, clusters are being established and nearly 50 businesses specialized in producing poultry food are emerging. 

Séna Akoda

New directives have been introduced at the airport of Lomé (AIGE) to loosen the noose, a little, regarding Covid-19 screening. 

Indeed, starting this week, departing and arriving travelers must present a negative report (PCR covid-19 test) of no more than seven days (against five days previously) before traveling. Any traveler who does not comply with this rule will be denied access to flights, the AIGE informed. 

The airport authorities added that travelers visiting Togo for no more than seven days will not need to redo a covid-19 test if the one they did on arrival is negative. 

Recently, Togo’s civil aviation authority said it controlled the disease through various initiatives such as setting a modern lab for screening at the airport. As a result, only 31 people out of 15,000 (around 0.2%) who transited through the airport since it resumed two months ago tested positive for covid-19.  

For more information about traveling procedures in Togo, click here.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Despite the pandemic and the pressure it put on Togo’s economic sectors, the country’s cereal production is faring well. Indeed, for the 2019-2020 campaign, grain output was estimated at 1.3 million tons thus 7% above the average for the 2015-2019 period. 

Production of corn (which is the most consumed grain in Togo) over the campaign under review stood at 923,000 tons (or 10% more than the average for the past five years). 

Regarding projections for this year, they are excellent and according to the FAO, this is due to good rains and satisfactory supply of input by the state and private actors. 

“Rains were above average in most regions since March” and this was favorable to germination and cultivation. In the North especially, this enabled farmers to commence cultivation on schedule.

Also, the state helped farmers, by providing them with“improved seeds, fertilizers, phytosanitary products, and agricultural mechanization services, all through a zero-interest loan system.” 

Besides these good conditions (despite the negative impact that anti-covid safety measures had on agricultural value chains), “adequate food availability, a regular functioning of markets and the relative stability of prices,” also fostered food security in Togo.  

However, the country should keep depending on imports regardless of the positive projections for its cereal output. Indeed, the FAO observes that Togo’s cereal imports demand in the 2019-2020 campaign could be slightly above the average (280,000 tons) over the 2015-2019 period.  

Ayi Renaud Dossavi