Citizens of Sao Tome and Principe and Togo no longer need visas to visit each other. The two countries sealed a deal to this end on June 18, in Lomé. 

The deal, according to Togo’s ministry of foreign affairs, covers all passport holders. "Through the agreement signed today, holders of all types of passports will be able to travel reciprocally in both countries, visa-free for stays not exceeding ninety (90) days," the ministry said.

According to both countries’ ministers of foreign affairs, the agreement should boost cooperation, trade and tourism between Togo and Sao Tomé.

Esaïe Edoh

In Togo, telecom users have until Sunday, June 23, to participate in the ongoing Customer Satisfaction Survey of the ARCEP, the country’s telecom watchdog.

Launched on June 3, the survey aims tp assess the quality of services provided by fixed, mobile, and postal operators, as well as by ARCEP itself. The main objective is to “measure the overall satisfaction of consumers, users, and customers of the electronic communications and postal sector”.

To take part in the survey, click here.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Lomé will launch its next operation on the WAEMU stock market on June 24. The Treasury will seek CFA30 billion, through a simultaneous issue of fungible bonds (OATs) and fungible bills (BATs).

In detail, Lomé expects to secure CFA10 billion via the BATs and CFA20 billion via the OATs. The former mature over 364 days, have a par value of CFA1 million, and multiple interest rates. The latter have a par value of CFA10,000, and maturities of 3 and 5 years, with respective interest rates of 6.15% and 6.40%.

Proceeds will plug Togo's 2024 budget, which stands at CFA2,179 billion–income and expenses. 

So far this year, Togo has raised CFA430 billion on the WAEMU market, i.e. around 71% of its annual target of CFA607 billion.

Esaïe Edoh

In a bid to cut debt costs, Togo's public administration is rethinking its external debt and capital mobilization strategy, looking to concessional loans. This is outlined in the country's new Medium-Term Debt Strategy (SDMT) 2024-2026.

The strategy aims to reduce the exposure of public debt to refinancing risks by extending the average maturity of outstanding public debt and making greater use of concessional debt to control debt servicing.

"The idea is really to no longer be subject to complex or very expensive financing, particularly market financing," explained Stéphane Akaya, Secretary General of the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

The goal here is for Togo “to position itself to take advantage of concessional resources”, particularly from multilateral partners and development players such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the African Development Bank (AfDB), and the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC).

World Bank, IMF, AfDB…

To date, Togo has concluded or is in the process of concluding several operations with multilateral partners for concessional financing exceeding $1.5 billion. 

According to Stéphane Akaya, the country has signed a $612 million facility agreement with the World Bank under the New Partnership Framework and is set to receive nearly $400 million in financing from the IMF over the next 42 months. Additionally, Togo is on track to seal a $200 million deal with the AfDB and eyes at least $400 million from the MCC for energy and ICT development projects. Meanwhile, the German cooperation has a portfolio of nearly $100 million in the West African country. 

Achieving parity by 2026

One of the country's other objectives is to rebalance its debt portfolio towards more external debt, to achieve parity between domestic and foreign debt by 2026.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Togo's Millennium Challenge Account Implementing Agency (OMCA-Togo) is preparing for the closure of the ICT and Land Reform Projects (LRAP), currently being deployed as part of the Threshold program. OMCA-Togo's Administrative and Financial Department organized a workshop to launch the program's closing process on Monday, June 11.

The workshop gathered heads of entities responsible for implementing the Threshold program from the Ministry of the Digital Economy and Digital Transformation and partner agencies and authorities in the ICT project. For the LRAP project, representatives from the Ministries of Urban Planning and Land Reform, Territorial Administration, Economy and Finance, Agriculture, and Rural Development were also present at OMCA-Togo.

The workshop aimed to present to the players involved in the program the broad outlines of their roles and responsibilities in drawing up the Program Closure Plan (PCP) and its implementation during and after the end of the Threshold program. This document aims to guarantee a smooth transition, maximize the program's impact, and ensure the sustainability of the results obtained.

Over the following six months, concerned parties will collaborate to validate the document which the MCC and the OMCA-Togo Board of Directors will approve.

The Threshold program has a budget of 20 billion FCFA ($35 million). At the end of September 2023, the ICT project was 71% complete, and the Land Reforms for Increased Agricultural Productivity (LRAP) project was 100% complete, with an overall financial execution rate of 21%, which has since improved.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) presented its regional economic outlook for sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) in Lomé, Togo, on June 13. The event brought together Togo's financial partners, including the World Bank, the UNDP, the African Development Bank AfDB, the European Union, and the French development agency AFD.

"Timid and costly recovery”

Themed “Timid and Costly Recovery”, the IMF report outlines future challenges and recommendations to support SSA countries. The report is dated April 2024.

"The subregion is expected to grow from 3.4% last year to 3.8% this year. Macroeconomic imbalances in the sub-region are also being reduced, whether in terms of the countries' deficits in the sub-region, or terms of debt. The report also identifies several persistent challenges. There remains a shortage of financing. It's still difficult for many countries in the sub-region to raise resources on the international markets", said Maximilien Kaffo, IMF resident representative in Togo. The Fund also notes the persistence of exogenous and endogenous shocks, especially climate change, and the uncertainty tied to elections in many SSA countries.

“Overall, the recovery remains very timid”, even if each country has a different context. This slow recovery does not foster a significant rise in per capita income across the region.

Togo to bring down budget deficit to 3% by 2025

The Togolese government broadly shares this view, as Stéphane Akaya, Secretary General of the Ministry in charge of the Economy and Finance, indicated at the opening of the recent meeting.

"The Government broadly shares this report’s conclusions and recommendations made, which, for the most part, align with the strategic orientations of the Government Roadmap", Akaya noted. He then recalled that Togo seeks to cut its budget deficit to 3% of GDP by 2025. This would require boosting revenues and better managing spending, focusing on priority expenses.

In 2023, Togo signed a new agreement under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) with the IMF. The move led to a series of disbursements to the public treasury and should help meet the macroeconomic and budgetary targets.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Togolese cotton farmers and the government recently met with Olam Group to discuss the cotton industry. This could be good news for the sector, after a 2023/2024 season marked by tensions and mild output.

The meeting took place on June 11 and 12 at the Ministry of Agriculture in Lomé, gathering the industry’s key players. The Minister of Agriculture, Antoine Gbegbeni, oversaw the talks, alongside representatives of the Nouvelle société cotonnière du Togo (NSCT) and the Fédération nationale des groupements de producteurs de coton du Togo (FNGPC).

Major issues covered included the fixing of the purchase price of seed cotton at 300 F CFA for 1st choice and 280 F CFA for 2nd choice. The goal was to guarantee farmers better remuneration. It was revealed that NPKSB and Urea fertilizers will be sold at subsidized prices (14,000 F CFA per 50-kilogram bag). 

The decisions emerged after farmers complained about input costs.

Also during the sitting, a tripartite committee was set up to examine all strategic issues plaguing the cotton industry. The committee regroups representatives from FNGPC, NSCT, and the State.

In recent months, farmers have lost trust in Olam, complaining about how it manages the sector after it took over the NSCT in 2020. Among others, they complained about stagnant yields and delays in supplying essential inputs.

"We've been watching Olam for more than three years, and right now, we don’t trust them to move forward," said Koussouwè Kouroufei, president of the Fédération Nationale des Groupements de Producteurs de Coton (FNGPC). The body regroups five regional unions for 27 prefectural unions with 3075 producer groups, totaling 153,000 cotton growers.

The Minister of Agriculture lauded the recent talks and urged farmers to ramp up efforts for greater results in the coming campaign. Farmers are yet to comment. 

Since it took over the sector, via the NSCT, Olam has struggled to achieve its major goal of doubling Togo’s cotton output. It was only this year that the Asian group recorded its first output increase. Many blame Olam and its management for the situation but there are other factors behind the shortfalls (in yields and production). 

The Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) held a regional training meeting on the use of the Electronic Case Management System (ECMS) from June 10 to 12 in Lomé. The meeting brought together lawyers and judicial agents from French-speaking countries in the community.

The training focused on digitizing the Court's procedures, including decisions drawn up in electronic format, time limits for enforcing commercial decisions, and deadlines for judges to rule on provisional applications.

This move aims to improve access to the Court and streamline proceedings. It will also allow parties involved in a trial and litigants to introduce their cases and monitor them remotely.

"The legal recognition of electronic writing and electronic signatures will help address issues related to electronic evidence and securing trial documents," said Togolese Minister of Justice Mipamb Nahm-Tchougli.

Esaïe Edoh 

The dry port of the Plateforme Industrielle d'Adétikopé (PIA) should resume operations in a few days. Edem Tengue, Togo’s Minister of Maritime Economy, disclosed the news via X on June 12. 

The resumption aims to redynamize trade between Togo and Niger. It follows a meeting to evaluate activities at the Port of Lomé, particularly those related to the transit of goods bound for Niger.

Activities at the dry port were paused in March 2024, and this had a significant impact on the transit of goods to Niger. 

As operations are set to resume soon, several shipping giants said they want to join the platform. These include Swiss-Italian MSC, Denmark's MAERSK, France's CMA CGM, Singapore's PIL, and Japan's ONE.

The dry port was established by a presidential decree issued in May 2021. The Adétikopé Industrial Platform (PIA), a PPP between the government and ARISE, has been a major hub for the region, serving as a platform for trade with landlocked countries.

Esaïe Edoh