The World Bank will provide Togo $8.1 million to help it fight the coronavirus. 

The funds will enhance the country's testing capacities and healthcare, by acquiring and setting up a mobile laboratory, treatment centres, and buying top-notch medical equipment. “They will surely improve Togo’s reaction against the pandemic,” said Hawa Wague, resident representative of the World Bank in Togo. This is in a context where the outbreak puts great pressure on the country’s hospitals and dispensaries which are at the front line of this war. 

On April 29, Togo reported 109 Covid-19 cases, including 38 active, 64 recovered, and 7 deaths. Overall, Lomé has tested so far 6,675 people across the territory.

Togo will set up a coastal protection entity as part of the second phase of the multinational project for the rehabilitation of the Lomé-Cotonou road.

In this framework, the ministry of infrastructure and transport launched a call for manifestation of interest to hire a firm that will conduct studies related to the project. The deadline for the submission of applications is May 26, 2020. 

The studies aim at establishing a management framework to ensure that important decisions are taken jointly. They will help define administrative, legal, and scientific features of the entity. 

In the medium and long term, these studies should consolidate foundations for inclusive cooperation between all concerned scientific actors in the region. 

The project is financed by the African Development Bank (AfDB), which acts as the implementing agency of the Global Environment Fund (GEF). 

Séna Akoda

In Togo, the minister of agriculture, Noel Bataka, just gave 72 agricultural tractors to farmers. 

The donation falls under a project steered by the MIFA and KFB Group, a private firm. 

The tractors, which cost a total of XOF1.8 billion, will help sustainably develop food production chains, “through improved agricultural practices which increase output and boost food security,” Bataka said. 

In November 2019, KFB Group had launched a call for entrepreneurs interested in buying agricultural equipment to advance the local agriculture.

The ceremony will take place in the afternoon (4 PM), at the presidential palace. 

The information was disclosed by the Constitutional Court which stressed that given the actual health crisis, the event will be organized in a very simple manner, with a limited number of people. 

Faure Gnassingbé won the elections (held on February 22, 2020) with more than 70% of the votes. For his new term, the leader has committed to keeping the improvement of Togo’s business climate a priority. 

All eight member-States of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) need exactly XOF5,284.9 billion to combat the Covid-19 pandemic. 

The estimate was disclosed on April 27 by the Union’s heads of State council which held a videoconference that day. 

The council also noted that the funds will greatly deepen the WAEMU’s overall budget deficit (grants included). The deficit is now expected to stand at 5.5% in 2020, against 2.7% initially. 

Hence, the leaders of the region have, among others, decided to suspend the WAEMU convergence criteria. This is to enable them to have more room to deal with the current crisis. 

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Togo’s national council of employers has just released a report assessing the economic impacts of the government’s Covid-19 response. The document also contains some recommendations to revamp the economy. 

The report is in effect the results of a survey of 110 companies. The latter reveals that 41% of the surveyed firms have paused their activity while the rest function at a slow pace. The survey also shows that only 6% of the surveyed have sent their employees on paid leave or allow them to work from home. Meanwhile, 91% of the companies have opted for temporary lay-offs. 

The employers' council demands that penalties for the delayed execution of public contracts are canceled during the crisis. At the same time, the council asks the government to pay internal debts, with priority given to SMEs and SMIs, to create a guarantee fund that will help finance the recovery of SMEs and SMIs especially. 

Séna Akoda

US rating agency Standard & Poor’s maintained its ‘B’ long-term and short-term sovereign credit ratings on Togo. “The significantly adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic will take a toll on the Togolese economy and public finances in 2020. Nevertheless, the country's solid economic performance and the fiscal consolidation over past years should contribute to a rapid economic recovery from next year,” the agency said in its latest update for the country released on April 24. 

Uncertainties

S&P hence expects a slow restart of economic activity starting from the second half of this year. Just like the IMF, the agency forecasts a 1% growth rate for the rest of 2020 but unlike the Bretton Woods institution it emphasizes that “our economic projections are uncertain, however, since they depend on how the pandemic evolves.” S&P attributes this uncertainty to the large informal sector, “unaccounted for in official data.” This sector, experts say, makes it very difficult to estimate the pandemic’s economic impact. 

Regarding the budget deficit, it should dip to 4%, despite international actors mobilizing funds to help Togo cope with new spending spurred by the Covid-19 and losses of tax earnings. This is quite unfortunate given all the efforts the country had made to improve its public finances in recent years.

“The stable outlook on Togo reflects our view that the adverse economic and budgetary impact of the COVID-19 pandemic will be contained without lasting and structural damage to credit metrics,” S&P says adding that “once the impact of COVID-19 is contained, we expect the authorities to continue with further structural economic and budgetary reforms, leading to improved economic and budgetary performance.” 

Socio-political risks

In addition to its uncertainties, S&P, based on recent facts (mid-2017) and the regional context, talks of socio-political and security risks in the short and long term. These “could be a disincentive for private investors and make foreign investment flows more uncertain.” Quite a dire premonition for the country which depends on these investors to provide 65% of the funds needed for its national development plan (PND). 

Here again, the report’s authors believe that once the pandemic is contained, investments in export sectors (phosphate and cotton mainly) and infrastructures, in line with the PND, should restart. 

WAEMU, a fortunate protection

A good point for Togo, according to S&P, is that it is part of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU). Indeed, the latter is for the country a safety net protecting it with the regional stock market, solid reserves, and the possibility to use part of the cash liquidity it (Togo) has at the BCEAO to plug the budgetary deficit. However, this might not be possible if pressure on the zone’s foreign reserves rises, especially considering that the imbalance between import and export bills keeps growing. 

Fiacre E. Kakpo

Last week, Pan-African lender Ecobank disbursed about $3 million to help African nations fight the Coronavirus pandemic. 

The support, which was provided in cash and health equipment, also involves sensitization campaigns and money transfers to the most vulnerable people, via the bank’s digital platform. 

In the same framework, Ecobank has canceled some fees on its digital platforms. 

“We believe in the importance of creating awareness in our communities, while also empowering them to protect themselves and their families as we battle the pandemic,” said Ade Ayeyemi, Group CEO, Ecobank Group. 

Ecobank, which operates in more than 30 African countries, also collaborates with the African Union’s development agency (AUDA-NEPAD) to help African SMEs in coping with the economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.