Togo First
Last year, Togo recorded the highest level of bancarization within the WAEMU
In 2018, Togo was the most bancarized country of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), with a rate of 26.8%. This was revealed in a report recently released by the BCEAO.
Just after Togo came Mali (23.3%), Benin (22.5%) and Côte d'Ivoire (21.6%). At the last position in the ranking was Niger with a bancarization rate of 5.8%.
Let's note the number of adults (15 years old and above) with an account at banks, postal services, national saving fund, and the treasury grew by 2.5% over the period under review.
This is the third-largest increase in WAEMU, just behind Côte d'Ivoire and Mali, which respectively recorded a growth of 4.5% and 10.8% last year. In Mali, the performance is mainly attributable to the creation of multiple Xpress accounts at Ecobank Mali.
Overall, bancarization rate grew by 2.9% across the WAEMU, from 16.4% in 2017 to 19.3% in 2018.
Ayi Renaud Dossavi
A delegation of the FNFI is currently in Ouagadougou for the 4th African Microfinance Week
A delegation from the FNFI and the State Secretariat in Charge of Inclusive Finance and Informal Sector is presently in Ouagadougou where it is attending the 4th African Microfinance Week.
The event will be the occasion to discuss the growth of inclusive finance in Africa, and especially on its impacts on sustainable development goals (SDGs).
The two-day meetup takes place once every two years and will give Togo the opportunity to showcase its expertise and learn from other countries relative to inclusive finance.
From 2014 and 2018, FNFI has provided more than 1.5 million of loans amounting to XOF1.7 billion to various businesses.
Other activities scheduled at the event include fair for investors and an innovation festival which is set to take place on October 24 and 25, 2019.
Séna Akoda
Togo: Some "illegal" financial institutions ordered to cease their activities
Sani Yaya, Togolese minister of economy and finance, ordered the closure of some financial institutions that have been operating "illegally" yet promise high returns.
While the list of the concerned institutions has not yet been released, the minister's statement indicated that they "take money from people against capital securities or placement, promising up to 360% of interest."
The owners of these institutions also promise a yearly interest rate of 90% on initial deposits.
These prohibitive rates mainly aim at attracting the young, deceiving them and swindling them of their money.
Séna Akoda
Togo: Cotton farmers urged to help the country achieve its 200,000 t output target by 2022
The National Federation of Cotton Farmers Associations (FNGPC) recently met with cotton producers to know their concerns and urge them to help the country achieve its 200,000 t output by 2022.
This was during a tour of the FNGPC in the Savanes region. The latter was led by the federation's new chairman, Kouroufei Koussouwè.
Talks at the meeting focused on ways to boost yield per hectare. For the 2019-2020 campaign, it is expected to reach 1.1 t.
To encourage the farmers to boost their output, the FNGPC will provide an additional bonus to all of them who will be able to cultivate 100 hectares, for a yield of 1 t per year, said Koussouwè. They will receive input to achieve this target.
The MIFA will also help the farmers by improving their access to fertilizers for cereal production. This would prevent eventual diversion of input to be used for cotton farming.
Séna Akoda
Société Générale des Mines obtains operating permit for Nayega manganese deposit
Last Friday, the government provided Société Générale des Mines (SGM), a subsidiary of Keras Resources, the operating permit for the large scale exploitation of the Nayega manganese deposit (West Kpendjal prefecture). This was announced during a ministers' council held last week.
The decision follows conclusive exploration in the region and an application for the permit by SGM's subsidiary.
According to SGM which conducted the exploration, manganese reserves found at Nayega amount to nearly 8.5 million tons. Based on this estimate, the mine is expected to have a lifespan of 11 years.
The government plans to tap into the new reserves to achieve the third axis of the PND which relates to the development of community projects and the creation of direct and indirect jobs. These, the ministers say, will undoubtedly have a positive impact on the mining area, at the social and economic levels. It should also improve partnership between Togo and the British firm in the long term.
Let it be recalled that in March 2019, the British firm had announced it secured approval to export a 10,000-ton bulk sample of manganese.
Séna Akoda
Teolis enters new partnership to incubate young Togolese entrepreneurs
In Togo, the Teolis foundation recently signed a partnership agreement with Potentiel&Talents, a firm specialized in human resource management, under which the latter will provide local startups training, incubation and financing to grow.
In the same line, a subsidy has already been provided to teach a dozen women basic ICT skills, under a project entitled DIG-IT-ALL. In addition, multiple partnerships to foster youth entrepreneurship were implemented.
The foundation has also recently partnered with Outre-Mer Network to launch various projects and incubate young Togolese entrepreneurs.
Séna Akoda
Soybeans: Togo launches its first regulated sales campaign
Last weekend, Togo's first-ever regulated soybeans (and derivated products) sales campaign was launched in Atakpamé, 161km from Lomé in the Ogou prefecture. The campaign covers the 2019-2020 period.
The set volume to be sold during the period is 78,000 tons. The floor price is CFA189 per Kg. This, in a context where the country's output in the past three years has risen from 24,000 tons to 35,000 tons.
The launch of the new sales campaign was the occasion to define a regulatory framework for the sales, as well as practical conditions for the campaign. The move was steered by the Soybeans Interprofessional Council of Togo (CIFS) and the Committee in Charge of the Coordination of this sector.
The sector, let's emphasize, employs nearly 300,000 people across the country.
Ayi Renaud Dossav
Togo prepares a new Code of urbanism and construction
Togo's government plans to revise all its existing urban laws and regroup them into a new Code of Urbanism and Construction.
Mainly, the revision covers "all facets of urbanization and construction, as an expression of urban policies. This includes its objectives, methods, resources, tools for urban planning and management, its spatial intervention framework."
The preparation of the new code falls under the Urban Development and Infrastructure Project (PIDU) which is financed with a loan from the World Bank's International Development Association (IDA).
This is a movement that emerged from "an urgent need to efficiently monitor the physical transformation of cities, land occupation and use, as well as achieve harmonious development of urban infrastructures."
Data from the National Institute of Statistics, Economic and Demographic Studies (INSEED), relayed by the PIDU, shows that nearly 3,094,100 people live in Togo's urban areas. This represents 42.1% of the country's overall population.
In 2020, this figure is expected to reach 3,351,800 inhabitants or 43.5% of the total population. Meanwhile, let's note, the number of secondary towns with more than 50,000 residents grew from one to six between 1990 and 2010.
According to public policies, to create jobs and wealth, urbanization has to be controlled and oriented for sustainable development. Controlling urbanization, however, involves revising the code of urbanism and construction, all related rules and institutions concerning urban development and planning.
The new code will add to the estate and land code.
Séna Akoda
Brasserie du Bénin (BB) and the University of Lomé sign win-win partnership agreement
The University of Lomé and Brasserie du Bénin (BB) have just signed a two-year partnership agreement under which the latter will provide its expertise, relative to training, as well as sponsors to the former.
Kafui, Kpegba, Vice President of the university declared in this regard that "the Brewery has highly performant executives who can give classes at the academy, both to students and lecturers."
For his part, Thierry Feraud, MD of BB Lomé, the agreement which he lauds will help strengthen cooperation between the two parties and tap into the university's human resources.
Togo's National Social Security Fund (CNSS) gives final warning on the end of physical reception and payment of social contributions
Starting next month, no more social contributions will be received or paid at the desks of the National Social Security Fund (CNSS).
"We would like to remind all our social partners that starting from November 2019, reception and payment of contributions will no more be possible at our desks," a notice from the institution warns.
This decision aligns with reforms implemented by public policies to improve the Togolese business climate.
This decisive warning comes after various announcements and advertising, to no avail, regarding the digitalization of the processes mentioned. The latter was launched in December 2018.
However, the CNSS will give a 3-month grace period to all those who will fail to respect the new norm. Hence, it is finally starting from January 2020 that the measure will be definitive.
Initially launched on T-money and Flooz, e-payment of social contributions was extended at the beginning of this year to four local banks, namely: BTCI, UTB, Ecobank, and Orabank.
Séna Akoda