Angolan group DGM is qualified for the final stage of an international tender launched by Lomé for the development of a national biometric identification system. The latter is one of the major projects of Togo’s new national development plan (2018-2022).

DGM Sistemas takes part to the bidding with Mtdhouse and Unys. The first operates in the IT sector and develops infrastructures to modernize public institutions while the second is active in the biometry sector.

Beside these firms, six others are running against DGM to win the tender.

The Angolan conglomerate’s decision to participate to the tender aligns with its international strategy to expand its operations, knowingly in the sectors of civil identification, social security and health, to other African nations, with a focus on members of the community of Portuguese language countries (CPLP) and French-speaking African countries.    

“Our conglomerate is renowned for its excellence in the projects we developed over the last years. We are now looking to export this experience, our knowledge and most advanced technologies to help government institutions fulfill their obligations toward the people,” said Mauro Franco, associate at DGM and head of its expansion strategy.

Baptized e-ID Togo, Togo’s biometric ID programme will require an investment of CFA20 billion. It aims to provide each Togolese citizen and resident with a unique biometric ID number.

Fiacre E. Kakpo

In Togo, under the mechanism fostering agricultural funding (MIFA), Orabank-Togo has issued a loan of more than CFA330 million for 392 farmers who belong to three cooperatives.

The cooperatives are  COOP-CA UCAPRIKO, COOP-CA UCARIM and COOP-CA UNION WLI-BOLOU which respectively received CFA125,249,000, CFA120,383,000 FCFA and CFA88,665,000 FCFA to fund their operations.

Interest rate on the loan is 8%, according to the related note released on MIFA’s Facebook page.

MIFA aims to provide in ten years, up to ten times seed money and bring agricultural loans’ share in banks’ loans from 0.3% to 5%.

The scheme should positively impact a million farmers by 2021, through the professionalization of value chains, boosting financial inclusion and creating cooperatives.

Séna Akoda

CFA25.077 billion. That is the amount raised by Togo’s treasury through its latest fungible bonds issuance on the UMOA-Titres market last Friday.

This sum is about half (54.1%) the amount targeted by the treasury. In detail, total amount of bids placed for the 3-year bond issuance was CFA23.259 billion, of which CFA21.03 billion was retained. As for the 5-year bonds, only about CFA4 billion were raised for the operation.

The issuance falls under Togo’s public security issuance programme, in line with the country’s mid and long term debt management strategy.

Let it be recalled that monies collected through the operation should help the country fund its budget.

Séna Akoda

Electricité de France (EDF) has inked an agreement to buy 50% of BBOXX’s capital in Togo. The related ceremony was chaired by Togo’s Prime Minister, Komi Selom Klassou.

The French firm’s decision to join BBOXX’s shareholding should help speed up the CI-ZO programme.

“BBOXX’s solar kits include solar panels with integrated batteries. They are easy to set up and can be paid via mobile. These kits are used for lighting and also to power various low consumption home appliances such as TV, radio, fan or  mobile phone,”  the firm explains.

Identified as one the reference initiative of G20’s Compact With Africa programme, CI-ZO is a project designed by Togo to achieve universal access to power by 2030. 

Last October 2015, the ministers’ council adopted a bill to establish commercial courts in Togo. It also set procedures to follow when reaching out to these courts.

The decision aligns with the government’s desire to improve the country’s business climate. Lomé had already established commercial chambers to ensure contracts are duly carried out. However, the ministers’ council says, the chambers, while ensuring good practices, fail to fill the void left regarding legal basis for court proceedings.

Additionally, article 84 of Togo’s constitution states that rules defining legal and administrative proceedings are set by the law.

Hence, the newly adopted bill which is based on OHADA’s universal principles for equity tackles this shortcoming. Now, the next step consists in the approval of the bill by the parliament. 

Séna Akoda

Today, October 26, Togo and Ghana’s leaders, Faure Gnassingbé and Nana Akufo-Addo, will inaugurate the Noèpé-Akanu juxtaposed check post, 30km from Lomé.

Built over 17ha, under the initiative of ECOWAS and with a financing from the European Union, the station will help ease movement of people and goods in the region.

It attests of coordination between the two countries’ customs and will lead to less controls along the roads.

It should be indicated that the Noèpé station had already been inaugurated once in 2014 but could not start operating due to various logistics-related issues. Also, the two leaders had already visited the site in May 2017 on the sidelines of a visit by the Ghanaian president to accelerate its operationalization. 

Octave A. Bruce

The World Bank and the European Union have provided a $20 million financing to support Togo’s economic governance support project (PAGE). The latter was launched 25 October 2018 by Aharh-Kpessou, Permanent Secretary monitoring reforms and financial programmes at the ministry of economy and finances.

The PAGE aims to help the State better manage public investments, mobilize internal resources, and improve accountability mechanisms and monitoring of service provision in key sectors. This would enable the government to overcome major challenges both in regards to economic governance and public finance management.

According to Aharh-Kpessou, “this programme focuses mainly on good governance and civic engagement as base for a sustainable economic growth”. Similarly, Hawa Cissé Wagué, World Bank’s resident representative in Togo said: “By getting the civic society more engaged in the budget preparation process and downstream in the monitoring of public service provision, the project will ease and ensure transparency in the management of public finances.”

Indeed, the PAGE  will produce platforms and mechanisms through which the civic society and other citizen groupings can take part to dialogue with the State concerning budget priorities and give their opinion to improve quality and access to public services in targeted sectors. The project will be carried out in over five years.

 Séna Akoda

Last October 24, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), signed a partnership agreement with Atlantic Microfinance For Africa (AMIFA) for the development of AMIFA’s products and services and the promotion of microfinance in Subsaharan Africa.

The agreement signed in Rabat should help AMIFA, a subsidiary of Groupe Banque Centrale Populaire (BCP) since 2014, develop its microfinance programme aimed at micro companies and small projects carriers in Subsaharan Africa.

Despite the development of financial inclusion in the region, in the recent years (from 23% of the population in 2011 to 43% in 2017) majority of the adult population have no access to sustainable and regulated financial services.

According to BCP managers, "the partnership will enable us benefit from IFC's expertise and support in optimising our model and delivering a microfinance programme that contributes more efficiently to the financial inclusion of a significant part of the low-income population”. BCP  which owns a microfinance institution in Côte d’Ivoire aims to establish similar institutions within the WAEMU community.

In 2018, IFC consecrated about $23 billion in long-term investments aimed at ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity.

Octave A. Bruce

Next month, November 22 and 23, Lomé will host a major forum on opportunities for Togolese and foreign investors to co-finance agropoles in Togo.

This was announced on Wednesday October 24 by Odilia Gnassingbé (photo), Executive director of Autonomous centre for study and reinforcement of development capacities in Togo (CADERDT).

The official who was expressing herself at the International Agrofood and Agriculture Trade fair of Lomé (SIALO) said the forum would be the occasion to discuss private sector’s engagement in Africa’s structural transformation, via agriculture.

According to her, private-public partnerships (PPPs) constitute a relevant option to fund agriculture. “The CADERDT will have to showcase actors of both private and public sectors, potentialities and opportunities for business in the agro-industrial sector in Togo”, Odilia Gnassingbé declared, highlighting that during the event, “conditions required for an efficient implementation of PPPs in Togo would be revealed”.

Let’s recall that under the second axis of Togo’s new national development plan (PND), Togo plans to develop 10 agropoles. Actually, the pilot phase of this project will soon be started in Kara, northern Togo.

Octave A. Bruce