Togo First
Togolese Evelyne Hohoeto was recently sworn in as one of five Judges at OHADA’s CCJA
Appointed last November as one of the five judges of the Common Court of Justice and Arbitration of the Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa (OHADA), Evelyne Hohoeto, High Magistrate and Executive Secretary of the National OHADA commission met with the press on August 16, at the Ministry of Justice. We thus had the opportunity to ask her a few questions regarding her new position.
Togo First: You were recently made magistrate at the Common Court of Justice and Arbitration (CCJA) of OHADA. How did this happen?
Evelyne Hohoeto (E.H) : First, I am grateful to the President for allowing our Minister of Justice to submit my application when the position at CCJA was opened. We were 13 applicants and out of these, five were picked. We were appointed by OHADA’s ministers’ council, held on November 23 and 24, 2017, in Conakry, Guinea. We were later on June 28 sworn in in Abidjan.
T.F : So, what are your main responsibilities ?
E.H : Let me emphasize that candidates must come from different countries. Given that the court is Ohada’s highest court and since it acts as a court of cassation and Supreme Court for all 17 member states of the organization, our role and mission as judges is to build the Ohada’s jurisprudence. This jurisprudence‘s purpose is to harmonize laws and practices within Ohada which is actively engaged in the improvement of business climate in member states making them more attractive for investors. CCJA hence intervenes when two distinct parties are having a conflict related to business law, for example regarding corporate law. During the legal process, when one or both parties is not satisfied in first instance and files for appeal, it has to submit the case to the CCJA which plays a key role in the elaboration of the OHADA law.
T.F : You are the first Togolese to fill this position. It is therefore both an honor for you and for Togo as well…
E.H : Of course, it is an honor for my country, and for me also. I will represent Togo proudly and with much dynamism in order to honor it even more.
T.F : How long will you be holding this position ?
E.H : Judges are appointed for a 7-year non-renewable term, therefore I will hold this position for 7 years.
T.F : Have you already moved to Abidjan ?
E.H : Yes, I have since June 28, 2018, when I was sworn into office.
T.F : What do you have to say to close this interview ?
E.H : My country has always contributed to the expansion of Ohada. As permanent secretary, Togo was the one to lay the organization’s foundations, and help it walk its first steps. I am proud to represent Togo because I know I have its support and also I can rely on the seriousness of Togolese when it comes to doing a job well.
Caleb Akponou (Intern)
Espace Culturel Level to train young people in tire recycling in Lomé, end-August
From August 27 to 30, Espace Culturel Level will organize in Lomé, a workshop to train young people in recycling tires into artwork. This, of course, it will do, while taking into consideration environmental concerns.
During the workshop, participants will be equipped with technical knowledge which will allow them to recycle old tires, turning those into chairs and tables. Pneumatic craft will be studied as well.
Formerly known as “Fil Bleu Aréma”, Espace Culturel Level hosts shows, cultural events and various workshops focused on culture-related professions.
“Technologies to achieve Africa’s green revolution exist, but are mostly just sitting on the shelves” -Akinwumi Adesina
African Development Bank’s (AfDB) President, Akinwumi Adesina, made a call to equip African farmers with new technologies that are able to transform the continent’s agricultural production. “Technologies to achieve Africa’s green revolution exist, but are mostly just sitting on the shelves. The challenge is a lack of supportive policies to ensure that they are scaled up to reach millions of farmers,” said Adesina.
Emphasizing the Bank’s determination to transform African agriculture to unlock new sources of wealth, the President declared: “There is no reason why Africa should be spending US$ 35 billion a year importing food. All it needs to do is to harness the available technologies with the right policies and rapidly raise agricultural productivity and incomes for farmers, as well as assure low food prices for consumers.”
Through its Enable Youth initiative, the AfDB has spent over the past two years around $300 million to develop Africa’s next generation of agribusiness holders and farmer-traders.
“With the rapid pace of growth of the use of drones, automated tractors, artificial intelligence, robotics and block chains, agriculture as we know it today will change,” Adesina said. “It is more likely that the future farmers will be sitting in their homes with computer applications using drones to determine the size of their farms, monitor and guide the applications of farm inputs, and with driverless combine harvesters bringing in the harvest.”
Togo: State to audit accounts of public institutions, funds and public organizations, subsidized for 2018-2020 period
In Togo, accounts of public institutions, funds and public organizations subsidized for the 2018-2020 period will be audited. To this end, the State has launched a call for expression of interest to hire a consulting firm to lead the process.
Audits planned will help assess how the targeted entities use their funds and determine if this utilization meets public accountability standards. Additionally, they will allow to determine if goods purchased by the entities were effectively acquired in line with procedures falling under Togo’s procurements code.
The same goes for services provided to the entities. The projected audits will assess the authenticity of supporting documentation submitted for transactions and shed light on account movements for the period reviewed.
Through these audit missions, the State also aims to make sure concerned entities respect procedures for preparing financial statements, in line with standards in place.
Regarding applications submitted by consultants that are interested in conducting the audits, the related evaluation process to pick one will close on September 5, 2018.
Séna Akoda
After a successful simultaneous issuance, Togo seeks to raise CFA20M more on the regional finance market
Togo will next Friday once more make a move on the regional market, to raise CFA20 billion. This follows a good performance it recorded at the end of July when it raised CFA57.49 billion, via a simultaneous issuance, while seeking CFA50 billion.
Agence UMOA-Titres and Togo’s public treasures announced through a tender launched on August 10, 2018, that CFA20 billion worth of fungible treasury bonds will be issued August 17. Corresponding value date is August 20, 2018.
Proceeds from the issuance will be used to meet the State’s financing needs for its 2018 budget.
Regarding the upcoming issuance, nominal value of each security is CFA10,000, and the operation’s interest rate is 6%. Maturity period is 610 days, set to be reached on April 21, 2020.
Séna Akoda
Redd+ commits to helping Togo boost its forest cover
REDD+ stands for Reduction of Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation. This program rewards developing countries that adopt measures to increase their forest cover in order to help these nations increase their carbon-storing capacity and better fight global warming.
On August 13, 2018 in Lomé, under the supervision of the ministry of environment and forest resources, REDD+ coordination officially initiated two analyses that ultimately aim to boost forest cover in Togo.
The first of these two studies will assess Togo’s vegetal biomass so as to estimate the country’s carbon-storing capacity.
The second study should collect key data related to Togo’s forest cover over the 1975-1982 period. This will help establish reference line to boost forest cover.
Over the years, forest areas has ceased not to dwindle. From 449,000 ha in 1970, it slumped to 287,000 ha in 1980 then 140,000 ha in 1990. According to results of the first forest inventory carried out between 2015 and 2016, Togo’s forest area stands at 24.24%.
Togo: Authorities extend by a few weeks its program to collect business data in Lomé
The current three-month data collection program targeting businesses in Lomé has been extended by a “few weeks more”, according to a joint statement issued by three ministries including the ministry of economy and finance.
The program which aims to identify registered and unregistered businesses was initiated by the ministry of finance via Togo’s Revenue Office (OTR) in order to update its personal database. Additionally, the census will help update the country’s taxpayers’ registry (by determining addresses, main and secondary businesses…).
In this regard, authorities ask populations to collaborate with the 150 census workers who can be recognized by their badge. They are to provide a warm welcome, reliable and true answers, the joint statement indicates.
In the long term, the program would help Togo get a reliable tax and land registry, as well as improve its business climate.
Togo adopts bills to better fight illicit trafficking of cultural property
Togo’s parliament adopted at the end of last week two bills to fight illicit trafficking of cultural property.
The first bill allows the ratification of the convention that concerns measures to take to ban and prevent illicit import, export and transfer of cultural property; a convention adopted on November 17, 1970, in Paris.
The second bill greenlights Togo’s adhesion to Unidroit’s convention on stolen or illegally exported cultural goods, adopted on June 24, 1995, in Rome.
The first convention which came into effect in 1972, aims to fight illicit trade of cultural property through international cooperation. This should protect national heritage and ensure good ethics in trading cultural property generally, and artwork especially.
Now that this convention has been ratified, Togo should properly combat theft in museums and religious facilities, looting of archeologic sites or scattering of valuable collections. As for Unidroit’s convention, it will ease repatriation of cultural property to their country of origin.
Victoire Tomégah-Dogbé : “Young people need to be reassured and for that they need dedicated spaces”
Last Friday, Togo’s minister of grassroot development, craftsmanship, youth and youth employment, Victoire Tomégah-Dogbé met with various media including Togo First. This was ahead of the International Youth Day, held every August 12th, and which this year was themed “Safe Spaces for Youth”.
Togo First: Why did the United Nations decide to celebrate the International Youth Day?
Victoire Tomégah-Dogbé: The United Nations designated August 12, since 1999, as a day where youth’s full potential would be recognized as well as a day to celebrate youth’s major contribution to the development of our societies, of pacific societies most importantly.
The commemoration’s purpose is to promote youth’s effective participation in decision-taking process in our societies.
T.F: How does the government approach the theme picked for this year’s international youth day ?
V.T-D : This year’s theme is “Safe areas for youth”. First, what we must ask is “why the need for safe space for young people?”
Young people have their own needs, specific needs. They need to meet somewhere to discuss. They have potential and skills, and as a result need dedicated spaces to demonstrate this potential. Therefore, it is quite obvious for us to relate to this theme and encourage our leaders to pay more attention to the creation of spaces especially dedicated to young people.
This theme, for our country, is a true whistleblower urging us to boost strategies related to the creation of such spaces.
Since 2012, Togo’s government has become aware of the need to open spaces for youths. A program was actually launched to this end and it enabled the creation of around 15 youth-dedicated spaces. The latter allows young people to perform socio-educative and civic activities. This in turn helps them grow and easily integrate into socio-professional life.
I would like to congratulate and sincerely thank the country’s top authorities for having quickly apprehended the need to create these spaces and for continuously helping investment to be directed to young people.
Youth centers add to measures established by the government to secure young people’s future and help them become able citizens, active and involved in the country’s development.
T.F : In detail, what is the contribution of these centers to the government’s youth promotion strategy ?
V.T-D : Youth centers are multipurpose facilities aiming to facilitate youth’s flourishing and their socio-economic insertion.
At a youth center, it is possible to do socio-educative, sport and cultural activities.
It exist to make young people full citizens and help them unlock their full potential.
The youth centers of Amadohomé and Kara are good examples of such facilities which were both fully funded by the State.
There are also those of Mango, Dapaong, Sokodé that are being built, or even Tandjouaré, Gando…, and many more. This is a program that is being carried out progressively. We launch various activities at these centers; such as the Vacances Utiles (Useful holidays) program which will begin soon. The government wants actually for such initiatives to be launched throughout the year.
Interview by Octave Aholnko Bruce (Intern)
Official Development Assistance: From 2006 to 2015, Togo raised $3,283 mln
Between 2006 and 2015, Togo received $3,283.54 million of official development assistance (ODA), with an inter-annual variation of $147.53 million. This was disclosed in the ODA report presented on August 9, 2018.
Over the same period, the report states that ODA rose from 3.9% in 2006 to 5.5% in 2015. Meanwhile, debt level decreased significantly from 67.49% to 25.6%.
Looking at the figures, Christophe Akpoto, Head of Bilateral Cooperation at the Ministry of Planing, said ODAs have a positive impact on the country’s growth. Lauding the report, he then added: “What we praise here is the fact that we have a study that lets us know where to focus our efforts to raise more funds to finance the national development plan (PND)”
The assessment which was validated after its presentation, highlights strengths and weaknesses of ODAs in regards to the implementation of development strategies (DSRP-C and SCAPE). It also contains some recommendations.
In Togo, ODAs help invest in key areas such as infrastructures, health, agricultural development, food security, as well as to fight social inequalities. In 2017, ODAs were valued at about $373 million or CFA217 billion.