Seven billion CFA. That was the sum paid by the Togolese government to the country’s power utility (CEET) in 2018 as part of arrears valued at nine billion. The information was disclosed by Togo’s energy director, Abas Aboulaye.

The arrears were accumulated as a result of populations not paying their bills regularly. To reverse this trend and reorganize public lighting maintenance, the inter-ministerial committee in charge of public lighting debt was in Dapaong, in the Savanes region, to meet with representatives of local collectivities.

Next regions to be visited by the committee are Kara, Sokodé, Atakpamé and Lomé.

Séna Akoda

Next June, on the 13th and 14th, Lomé will host the first Togo-EU economic forum. The event will gather 400 participants and its theme will be : “Building sustainable economic relations between Togo and the European Union.”  

During a press conference held in preparation of the forum, Togo’s state secretary and coordinator of the country’s business climate cell, Sandra Ablamba Johnson, said the event aims at developing a top business and exchange platform for local investors and those from the 27 European Union countries.

“This would help build partnership relations, attract investment in Togo and create wealth,” Johnson added.

During the forum, Togolese officials will showcase the country’s national development plan (PND) to western investors, as well as investment opportunities that Togo has to offer, and its emerging and key sectors, added Kodzo Adedze, minister of private sector.

In detail, 150 European businessmen and women, 150 local investors and 100 executives should attend the forum. Economic operators will pay to attend, Sandra Johnson highlighted.

Togo hopes to use the forum to attract a substantial part of CFA3000 billion expected from private sector for the PND’s implementation.

Séna Akoda

At Q4 2018, Moov Togo had more than 3.4 million active users.

According to Maroc Telecom, the parent company of the operator, which disclosed the figure last Monday in its annual financial report, this represents a 15.7% increase of its pool of active users. In effect, Moov Togo won more than 500,000 subscribers over the year that just ended.

While Maroc Telecom did not provide details about its African subsidiaries, it indicated that globally, its growth was driven by data, despite new taxes imposed in some countries where it operates.

Back to Togo, in 2018, the Moroccan group acquired in the country for Moov a 4G licence and renewed 2G and 3G licenses. 

Maroc Telecom ended the 2018 financial year with a turnover of more than CFA2,190 billion, up by 3.1% compared to 2017. The surge was spurred by a significant increase of customer base, to 61 million users (+6.5%). Operational result and net result also rose by 4.1% and 5.3%, respectively. 

Subsidiaries of Maroc Telecom include Mauritel, Onatel, Gabon Télécom, Sotelma and Casanet, and new African subsidiaries in Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, Togo, Niger and Central Africa, acquired since Jan 26, 2015. 

Let it be noted that active users include prepaid customers, who have made or received a call (excluding those from the concerned ERPT or Customer Care Centres), sent an SMS/MMS or used data services (excluding exchanges with the concerned ERPT network), in the past three months ; as well as post-paid customers that were not cancelled.  

Fiacre E. Kakpo

Togo jumped nine spots in the 2018 DHL Global Connectedness Index (GCI). The report, a detailed analysis of globalization, measured by international flow of trade, capital, information and people ranked, in this edition, Togo number one in the WAEMU, in terms of connectivity to global flows.

The African country is 92nd out of 169 countries, making it one of the nine African countries listed in the first 100 countries listed under the index.

Among internal factors that helped the country improve its performance in the rankings, there is better operational environment, better infrastructures, press freedom, freedom to work and freedom of financial flows.

The country also implements policies fostering trade globalization, such as visa facilitation policies for foreigners (the country was actually ranked third in the 2018 Visa Openness Report of the African Development Bank –AfDB).

In the near future, Togo’s overall situation should further improve, especially after the implementation of the African Continental Free-Trade Agreement, backed by the African Union and to which nearly 50 African countries have already committed to.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Togolese women will benefit from the Women's Global Development & Prosperity Initiative, a scheme launched Feb.7 by the Trump administration, seeking to advance women’s economic empowerment. This was announced by the US Embassy in Togo.

The initiative aims to reach 50 million women globally by 2025. To this end, it will focus on efficiently directing policies’ efforts and programs to support the development of the female workforce and women entrepreneurs.

Further, it will provide innovative educational programs, financial and technical assistance, capacity building as well as mentoring to support women's participation in the economy. In Togo, this objective is in line with the 3^rd axis of the National Development Plan.

Let’s note that Togolese Olowo-N'djo Tchalla who has become a reference in the promotion and empowerment of women with his company Alaffia, took part in the launching ceremony at the White House.

Séna Akoda

Nigerian transport and logistics platform, Kobo 360, will open offices in Togo next March, in line with its expansion strategy in West Africa.

The Nigerian platform, whose model is the same as Uber’s, connects companies that want to transport their goods to truck owners. To date, this network has access to a fleet of more than 5,000 trucks.

In the framework of its arrival in Togo, the startup’s representatives recently met actors of the transport sector in Lomé. In the coming months, Kobo 360 intends to expand to Ghana and Kenya.

In addition, the firm also wants to diversify its offers this year. These include warehousing and small-size (starting from five tons) delivery services.

In July 2018, Kobo 360, let’s recall, raised $1.2 million to support its ambitions in West Africa.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Togo now has its own cybersecurity agency, the ANCY. The latter will ensure security and defense of IT systems in Togo.

According to the council of ministers held last Wednesday, the agency’s role is to fight threats and risks inherent to the expansion of the digital industry.

ANCY’s creation aims at supporting “the implementation of the national development strategy for ICTs”, says the communiqué of the council. It falls under the “reform of Togo’s legal and institutional frameworks, in order to boost security and trust in the digital sector.”

Let’s recall that the law on cybersecurity and the fight against cybercrime was adopted in Togo in December 2018. 

Ayi Renaud Dossavi