In Togo, it now takes only around five hours to get a certificate of origin. This document certifies the origin of goods before export. 

Without it, goods are not allowed to enter an export destination. 

In addition to reducing the time needed to get the document, business owners can apply for it online through a dedicated platform set by the Togolese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIT). This was disclosed by Sandra Johnson, minister-adviser to President Gnassingbé, and head of the business climate cell which steered the improvement.

Société Aéroportuaire de Lomé-Tokoin (SALT) is looking for a firm to build the very first airport of the Gnassingbé Eyadéma international airport (AIGE).

SALT has in this framework launched a call for the manifestation of interest for investors willing to build and operate the infrastructure. They have until April 3, 2020, to manifest themselves. 

The hotel's construction aligns with the government's efforts to make tourism one of the pillars of the Togolese economy, according to the communiqué announcing the call for the manifestation of interest. Indeed, under its 2018-2022 national development plan, Lomé aims at raising tourism's share in GDP to 6.2% in 2022, from 4% in 2015, with at least 10,000 decent jobs created in the process. 

Another goal of the government, regarding tourism, is to increase income per visitor to about $700 in 2022 (against $520 in 2015). 

Séna Akoda

Hermès Communication was awarded a XOF57.5 million contract by Togo’s power utility CEET. The local subsidiary of the French company was picked out of five consultants running for the project. 

In detail, Hermès will provide the CEET with a nationwide communication plan relative to the reforms it has undertaken across the country. 

The project must be executed within 24 months. Its cost will be taken care of by the PRISET, which is Togo’s power reform and investment initiative. 

Roughly, the project aims at tackling challenges impairing reforms carried out in the Togolese power industry. In detail, it will focus on examining and updating the legal and regulatory framework in place in this sector, reinforcing and improving public service management, rehabilitating, expanding and improving distribution networks to reduce technical losses. 

Séna Akoda

Lomé is hosting a two-day meeting to discuss the sustainable management of lands in all Ecowas States. The talks which began yesterday will be steered by the heads of sustainable land management of the various ministries of agriculture of the 15 member-States. 

The talks fall under the program for the restoration of degraded land, for food and nutrition security in West Africa. Their primary goal is to boost the capacity of countries to sustainably manage agricultural land and increase arable land. 

Togo, let’s note, has already validated the environmental preservation program which mainly aims at “efficiently tackling land degradation, restoring more than 80% of degraded land, and achieving neutrality in terms of land degradation by 2030.”

Let’s also recall that this program is financially backed by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation, and technically by FAO.

The government of Togo just disbursed a loan of XOF1.5 billion which aims at helping prefectures grow their cashew outputs in the 2020 campaign. 

The move intervenes in a context where the authorities have noticed that cashew volumes have been progressing in the past few years. It is up to us, as actors, and professionals, to take advantage of available opportunities, commented in this regard by the minister of agriculture, Noël Bataka, at the launch of the present cashew commercialization campaign. Besides, the official urged actors of the sector to work hand in hand to make sure that the Togolese cashew industry is resilient to external shocks. 

Regarding the disbursed loan, it will be managed by the Incentive Mechanism for Agricultural Financing based on risk-sharing (MIFA). In the long term, Lomé’s initiative should protect both the cashew market and the economy as a whole, Bataka indicates. 

Let’s recall that from 2019 to 2020, volumes of cashew destined for commercialization grew from 22,000 t to 25,000 t (+14%). 

Séna Akoda

ECOWAS bank of investment and development, EBID, is willing to support Togo in the implementation of its 2018-2022 national development plan (PND 2018-2022). 

Indeed, the bank’s new chief, Agyekum Nana Donkor, who recently met with Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé, declared that “the strategic axes of the PND fall under our area of intervention. We are ready to help Togo achieve this ambitious plan. We will work on that, not only in the interest of the Togolese people alone but for the whole Ecowas region,” he added. 

The PND, let’s recall, aims at making Togo a logistics hub and a top-class business center in West Africa. Its second axis focuses on creating local hubs for agricultural processing, manufacturing, and mining while its third axis is aimed at fostering social inclusion. Overall, the plan will need an investment of XOF4,622 billion, 65% of which are to come from the private sector. 

Séna Akoda

Five days after Togo’s first case of coronavirus was reported, public authorities inform that the patient is in a “satisfactory clinical state,” without “any fever or symptoms that motivated their hospitalization.”

Regardless of the positive evolution, the government said yesterday that treatment is continued, by following standard protocol.  

Moreover, subjects who came in contact with the infected patient show no symptoms so far. 

No other case of infected individuals reported in Togo so far 

Despite the good news, Togolese health authorities urge populations to keep following preventive measures to curb the propagation of the virus (wear a mask, cover coughs, sneeze into the elbow or tissue, clean hands frequently, avoid touching eyes, nose, mouth, avoid contact with wild animals, etc.). 

To date, nearly 120,000 cases and more than 4200 deaths have been reported worldwide (more than 100 countries). According to the WHO, the fatality rate for the disease is 3.4%. 

Recently, in Africa, DRC and Burkina Faso reported their first cases. 

In China where the disease originated and which is the most affected by the virus, authorities seem to have halted its propagation, with 70% of infected subjects having recovered. On the contrary, Iran and Italy are greatly suffering from the pandemics. Italy has been quarantined.

In Togo, numbers to call to report eventual cases are: +228 22 22 20 73 / +228 91 67 42 42.

The project supporting youth employment and insertion in profitable sectors (PAIEJ-SP) recently enrolled 520 young starting entrepreneurs. 

This project is led by the Togolese State and financially supported by the African Development Bank (AfDB), Orabank-Togo, and others. It aims to help develop the following agricultural value chains: organic soybeans, soybeans, maize flour. 

So far, PAIEJ has produced a few success stories, such as Yao Toyo’s Jonction de Croissance Agricole au Togo (JCAT) or Daniel Komlan’s Agrokom. It helped its beneficiaries boost their outputs and export more. 

For example, Agrokom which processed only 180 t of soybeans in 2016 now handles 6,000 t per year (production, processing, and distribution). Meanwhile, JCAT currently exports up to 10,920 t of organic soybeans. It has created 3,203 direct jobs and 6,931 temporary ones. 

To date, the PAIEJ-SP has enabled the professional insertion of more than 25,000 people. 

Séna Akoda

On Monday, March 9, 2020, all Togolese deputies approved the bill establishing the national order of engineers. 

The bill which had been approved last December by the government (council of ministers) aims to make sure engineers operating in the country meet certain standards and ethics. 

The bill was adopted in parliament in the presence of Koko Ayéva, minister of urbanism.

This step is part of a larger scheme aimed at securing and guaranteeing citizen property. Other measures adopted in this framework include the adoption of a land code, as well as a code for land surveyors and architects. 

The Togolese ministry of agriculture via a recent statement reminds the public that Atrazine and Paraquat, which are pesticides, have been banned from use in the country. The ministry also urges all farmers to report sellers who still supply the products. 

“Since 2018, the country has forbidden the importation and distribution of these two products across the Togolese territory. The government then proceeded to seize and remove all remaining stocks on the market,” said the minister of agriculture Noel Bataka.

In effect, more than 13 tons of Atrazine were seized last year. 

The reminder comes as recent posts on social networks mention devastating effects the two products have, saying they can cause eye damage, nose bleeding, skin rash, and respiratory diseases. These were the same reasons glyphosate was banned from use in Togo.