At the end of 2017, Lomé’s court of first instance created commercial courts to handle minor conflicts involving sums ranging between zero and one million cfa.  

Via the decree n° 2699 I2OI7, the president of Lomé’s court appointed two magistrates to oversee these cases. This is to ensure they are rapidly processed.

The decree states that related hearings will be taking place every second and fourth of every Tuesday of the month, at the small hearing room at the commercial courts of the former Supreme Court.  

The reform aims not only to unclog commercial courts, by separating cases based on amounts involved, but also diligently process minor conflicts.

Moreover, it will improve traders’ trust in the legal system, a factor that is crucial in business environment and to attract investments in Togo.

DNCMP has released a note listing requirements that will be alleviated in the framework of the reform to provide 20% of public procurement to youth and women in Togo.

The document said that in regard to the requirement for a guarantee and a proof of financial ability, youth desiring loans will be backed by the national agency for the promotion and guarantee of financing for small and medium enterprises and industries, the national fund for inclusive finance (FNFI), and the fund for support to youths’ economic initiatives.

Also, no experience will be demanded for contracts to provide non-complex maintenance services. However, DNCMP advised interested entrepreneurs, starters to be exact, to team up with those with a minimum experience in these services.

Meanwhile, a minimum is required in terms of staff and equipment (leased), for recurring maintenance services.

As intellectual services are also included in the public procurement concerned, any youth or women desiring to secure such contracts will be asked a minimum such as a degree and qualified staff.

It should be emphasized that all these conditions and criteria do not apply to all procurements. According to DNCMP, they only apply to procurements financed by local resources, thus involving contracts which can be carried out by Togolese youth and women.

During the second edition of the Senegal-Togo economic and business days, Germain Mèba, president of Togo’s chamber of commerce and industry, and Daouda Thiam, his peer from Senegal, signed an agreement to reinforce the economic and commercial relations between the two countries.

Under the agreement, the two nations promised to improve their respective business climate, to attract more private investments.

It should be recalled that Togo, in the past few months, has initiated measures to achieve the same objective. A Business Climate Cell was even set for this purpose. It is coordinated by Sandra Ablamba Johnson.  

To boost their trade relations, as mentioned earlier, Togo and Senegal decided to create a joint and strategic business committee, which will supervise the implementation of decisions and projects that will be decided during the economic and business days.

This committee would also discuss  practices in regards to the free circulation of people and goods and as well focus on reducing the impact of informal activities on relations existing between the two countries’ private economic operators.

Séna Akoda

Togolese firm Jus Délice just raised from Moringa fund €2.6 million (CFA1.7 billion) making it the third largest African investment of the fund ever.

The firm will use the monies to produce top-quality natural (organic) pineapple juice. It targets the Europe which represents more than 50% of global consumption for organic healthy juices. This market is expected to grow by about 10% yearly.   

In detail, Moringa’s financing will be used to build Togo’s most sophisticated juice-processing factory. It will also help Jus Délice develop a large network of farmers practicing organic farming. This will be done with Label d’Or, a local firm created in 2012, which exports most of the country’s organic products. The projected network should count more than 7,500 farmers regrouped as cooperatives and operating in diverse sectors, namely pineapple, mangoes, and oleaginous.

All these align with the firm’s goal to become the region’s leading natural juice producer. Commenting on the development, Clément Chenost, Investment Director at Moringa, said: “We want to make the company a reference in terms of organic juice”.

Moringa is an investment fund which targets agroforestry projects in Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. It is sponsored by La Compagnie Benjamin de Rothschild (CBR), and supported by the African Development Bank (AfDB).

Fiacre E. Kakpo

Under the Threshold program of the Millennium Challenge Account, Togo should have started implementing various reforms in its land and ICT sectors. This, backed by a $35 million financing.  

However, newspapers L’Union pour la Patrie, revealed on May 15, 2018, that the prerequisite for the program’s effective launch, which is the adoption of a new land code, has not been met yet.  

This was actually said by Grace Morgan, head of a delegation that met last May 11 with Fiatuwo Kwadjo Sessenou, minister of urbanism and housing.

Morgan added that MCC and MCA-Togo are getting ready for the program but emphasized related works would begin only after relevant contract is signed, mid-June, and the parliament passes the new land code. To this, the minister answered that the condition would be met very soon.

Séna Akoda

Under its 2018-2022 national development plan which is being finalized, Togo’s government plans to establish a manufacturing hub and two industrial parks in the country. Each of the parks will have 15 intensive factories producing textile, shoes, among others, for export.

Indeed, the plan should help boost Togolese textile exports to many countries, such as the U.S (in line with AGOA).

The current project will focus on boosting local know-how, cotton production and improve the search for strategic foreign partners.

It is expected to capture up to CFA1,000 billion of foreign direct investments from 2018 to 2022. Efforts to improve business climate should contribute to that.

The project aims at creating 100,000 jobs over the considered period. In this framework, the government intends to develop value chains of major subsectors of Togo’s agroindustry. Based on this, it eyes an annual growth of 10% of industrial and manufacturing sectors.

Séna Akoda

Apparently, in Togo, commercial banks are the main financial contributors to firms’ investments in secondary and tertiary sectors.

Indeed, according to the 5th edition of the macroeconomic forecast investigation (a study based on a sample of 200 firms), local banks are about to become the leading funders (both internally and externally) of Togolese companies.

30% surge

Between 2015 and 2016, the study indicates that banks’ contribution to investment projects grew from 15% to 24.5%. The next year, this figure almost doubled to 44.7%. Let it be recalled that financing via own funds was in 2015 forecast at 79.3%. Meanwhile, equity financing stagnated, growing by 1% only to 3% in 2017.

A rise driven by banks’ appetite

Ministry of economy and finance attributed the greater contribution of banks in firm’s investments to a better performance of the lenders over the past years. Truly, data from BCEAO (West Africa’s Central Bank), loans contracted from banks increased by 22% as interest on these loans slumped (from 15.8% to 11.5%).

In fact, in the first quarter of 2018, this interest rate was below 10%, quite contrasting given the global challenges. Regardless, it attracted much investors, allowing lenders to collect more revenues for interests and related products (+9.2%).

...Still difficult to secure loans

Nevertheless, firms still have issues securing bank loans, according to the document which mentions a lack of guarantee requested by banks. Data shows that 47.1% of firms whose loan application was dismissed claim it is because of a lack of guarantee or one deemed non-credible. Regarding the latter, about 17.6% of firms applying saw their application rejected due to that factor.

Another reason for banks refusing to grant loans to firms is insufficiency of social capital, or investor’s share in a given investment.

However, regarding the lack of information on applicants, the creation of an information bureau for loan (BIC) helped make significant progress.

Fiacre E. Kakpo

In Togo, the agropole development project will significantly impact trade balance, decreasing trade deficit from -44% to -38%.

These agropoles will help the country boost its agricultural output and agricultural processing capacity. Locally processed products should be enough to meet local demand but they will mostly be exported.

Pilot stage for the agropoles development will be carried out in Kara, Northern Togo, and will cost CFA64 billion, out of which private sector is to provide 20 billion.

Séna Akoda