Togo wishes to set a High Authority for Quality and Environment, said Yaovi Attigbé Ihou, minister of Industry and Tourism. This was on the sidelines of the launch, April 11, 2018, of regional workshop on United Nations guide on guidelines for consumer protection.

The new institution will focus on making marketable products of quality but also look into environmental concerns.

According to the minister, the need to protect consumers, institutionally, is due to the fact that they are the “weak link” in the producer-marketer-consumer chain.

This is a major source of concern for West African nations, especially in the current context, of globalization, creation of new markets as well as exchange liberalization and most importantly with more fake products and services being supplied to various markets.

Regarding the issue of quality, States alone could not overcome it. “Regardless of the system of quality control put in place by the State or public powers, action of consumer associations remains extremely significant,” the minister said. Indeed, these associations are counterweight against industrials and marketers to ring the alarm bell that often calls authorities to take action.

In Togo, major consumer associations include the Consumers League of Togo and the Togolese Consumers’ Association.

Séna Akoda

As reforms to improve Togo’s business climate are still being implemented, “one of the medium-term objectives of the government” is to establish commercial courts. This is revealed in a document from the Business Climate Cell.

According to this source, in the long run, the project should lead to the specialization of civil and commercial jurisdictions, at the institutional level, into first instance and appeal courts. Once materialized, the reform would help respond to an issue pointed out by business holders, which is: legal and judicial security.

In effect, from first instance to conflict solving between economic operators, the latter want to have the assurance that their case will be handled by a competent judge, who solely deals with business-related cases.

Togo, let’s recall, already set commercial chambers that solely take care of commercial conflicts ; the nation even has special commercial chambers for cases involving minor amounts.

Séna Akoda

Togo raised about CFA2.9 billion to subsidize fertilizer purchase in the 2018-2019 agricultural campaign, says Ouro-Koura Agadazi, minister of agriculture, husbandry and fishery.

The subsidy will profit only “vulnerable” farmers selected all over the nation, “based on certain criteria”. According to sources, these are farmers owning between 0.25 and 1 hectare of arable lands. This would help them boost their output and be more autonomous, financially.

Overall, 36,700 tons of fertilizer is expected in the framework of the project. Private companies selling this fertilizer will also get involved in distribution process. Ideally, these firms would have at least a sales spot in each of the 385 cantons where the 244,597 vulnerable farmers identified live, according to data released. The main objective is for the fertilizers to be closer to these farmers.

Also, the subsidy would help lower price of fertilizers from CFA13,000 to CFA9,000 a bag. Each farmer will get three bags.

Séna Akoda

In Q1 2018, the number of firms launched soared by 13.6% year-to-year, according to statistics from the Centre for Business Formalities (CFE).

This increase results from reforms implemented by the government to improve business climate. Overall, 2,935 enterprises were created in the first three months of the year, against 2,583 a year earlier.

In detail, 2120 of those firms were Togolese, which is 83% of the total. Remaining companies, 417 overall (about 16% of total) were foreign.

Data also shows a constant increase monthly since January 2018. The related figure rose by 4%, 12.4% and 26% respectively in January, February and March 2018, as compared to the same months last year.

This trend should be maintained throughout the rest of the year and even accelerate further if the current sociopolitical crisis that the country experiences comes to an end. This will also be as a result of the various measures initiated by Lomé to improve its business environment.

Among these reforms, there are : reduction of fees to launch a business, online business creation, creation of business under private deed, liberalization of social capital for LLCs, issuance of construction permit in few days, reduction of cost and delay needed to connect users to power grid. All these, promote entrepreneurship in Togo. 

Fiacre E. Kakpo

The 1-km Tingbane-OTR road located in Dapaong, capital of the Savanna region, should be coated as part of the urban development and infrastructure project (PIDU).

The project was renegotiated by the Togolese government with World Bank’s support.

 An environmental impact study was conducted in this framework. According to those in charge of this study, its report will be part of elements attached to the project for its approval by World Bank’s board.

Besides the coating of Tingbane-OTR, PIDU will help develop sanitation projects in many of the town’s areas.

Séna Akoda

Last Tuesday, the International Monetary Fund lauded reforms initiated by Togo’s government, saying it disburse in the coming months another tranche of its 3-year loan to the country. This tranche amounts to $241 million.

In Togo since last March 27, the IMF delegation led by Ivohasina Razafimahefa has deeply assessed reforms undertaken by the Togolese government in the framework of the extended credit facility (ECF) approved in May 2017.

“Results falling in the framework of the three-year program were good. All quantitative performance criteria at the end of December 2017 were met. Similarly, all structural benchmarks were reached,” the delegation concluded.

“Budget goals regarding internal primary balance and internal financing were met by far,” it added.

Economy’s restart depends on crisis end

However, the Fund noted that economic activity in Togo has slowed in H2 2017, due to the sociopolitical crisis that the nation has been experiencing since August, that year. This caused growth to fall to 4.4% this year, from 5.1% in 2017.

Actually, IMF’s delegation leader said economic growth should near 5% in 2018 and stand close to that figure in the long term. By 2020, Togo’s economy should fully restart with growth expected to reach 5.2%. Of course, this is subject to a successful dialogue between Togolese political actors. “Socio-political tensions represent a risk for economic growth and could negatively impact real economy and tax earnings,” the mission’s head intimated.  

According to him, looking at its exports, Togo’s economy should strengthen further but for now, political unrest still threatens that. 

Public debt slumps   

According to IMF, public debt, State firms’ debts and arrears which made up 82% of GDP at the end of 2016, reduced to 77% of GDP at the end of 2017.

This is one of the best performances worldwide, Ivohasina Razafimahefa said. This improvement was spurred by a good control of budget expenditures, despite tax collection being less satisfying than expected.

No budget cuts

In order to keep afloat amid the persistent crisis that impairs results of OTR, the agency in charge of collecting tax and customs revenues, Togo’s government plans to amend 2018 budget which exceeds CFA1,320 billion. In addition, authorities aim to diversify the tax base. In this regard, a land tax reform supported by IMF is being prepared at OTR. And while this suggested some budget cuts, the minister of finance reassured, indicating that the move is just a simple harmonization and rationalization process, and in no way would involve budget cuts.

Fiacre E. Kakpo

Togo and Equatorial Guinea signed last week a memorandum of understanding (MoU) under which the second nation will supply the first liquefied natural gas (LNG).

The MoU was signed by Togo’s minister of energy, Marc Dèdèriwè Abli-Bidamon (photo), and Equatorial Guinea’s minister of oil and gas, Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima.

The agreement falls under the LNG2AFRICA initiative which aims to ensure Africa’s supply in LNG. In this regard, Equatorial Guinea promotes the use of LNG, produced and processed in Africa, for Africa. “LNG can transform Africa and the continent must thus use its own gas,” said the Equatorial Guinean minister.

“It is vital for African nations to monetize their gas resources, and for populations in need of power to benefit from this cheap, cleaner and locally produced resource. Equatorial Guinea has committed to collaborate with its neighbors in the region to find solutions that will benefit all. We hope that our partnership with Togo will be sustainable,” added Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima.

Equatorial Guinea, let’s recall, is one of Africa’s largest LNG producers. It exports 3.4 million tons of LNG every year to various nations around the world.

Fiacre E. Kakpo

From 2012 to 2016, India was Togo’s leading export destination, outside WAEMU. According to the country’s 2017 commercial surveillance report which assesses trade flow between Togo and other countries, India “imports mainly phosphate from the West African nation”.  

Over the four years reviewed, phosphate exports from Togo to the Asian giant soared from 2.9% to 13.6%. Yet, India has imported much more from other nations, with its level of consumption of Togolese phosphate slumping from 23% to 15.7%, over the period reviewed.

With the 13.6% mentioned previously, Togo has exported more phosphate to India than Ghana (13.2%) which is its second largest phosphate buyer, outside WAEMU, and the first in ECOWAS, followed by Nigeria with 12.9%.

The report shows that France is the sixth country to import most goods from Togo, at a marginal (almost) average rate of 3.3%.

Meanwhile, China over the same period, was the country’s 7th customer and first supplier, outside the sub-region. The Middle Empire indeed assured 20.4% of Togo’s imports, followed by France (9.4%), outside WAEMU.

Séna Akoda

It is now possible, the business climate cell (CCA) revealed, for a litigant to track how his or her business case is handled at the Lomé Appeal Court.

To do so, the litigant can either seek the relevant information via SMS by texting his case’s roll number to 93 55 98 30, or he can do that online by going to www.chambrescommerciales.tg/documentations.

The new reform will boost transparency with regards to business case management. It will also save time to litigant since he or she would no longer need to move in person to obtain information.

Commercial chambers, let’s recall, were created to handle commercial conflicts, rapidly and efficiently, thus contributing to the improvement of business climate. As a result, business cases were separated from civil cases and a clerk was appointed to take care of each, separately.

To the same end, special commercial chambers were also established. Their responsibility however is to exclusively manage conflicts involving amounts ranging from zero to one million CFA.

Séna Akoda