Togo First
OIF spent over CFA650 million in Togo in 2023
Togo received nearly a million euros from the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) in 2023. The exact amount was €991,960, according to Prof. Kangni Alemdjrodo, Advisor to the Togolese President on the Permanent Council of La Francophonie.
The official, who disclosed the information earlier this week, detailed that the funds backed a wide range of projects, educational, and cultural, but also projects for economic and sustainable development.
Over the past year, some of the projects both sides worked on include an economic and commercial mission of the Francophonie in the Eastern Mediterranean, two sustainable development projects in Ogou 1 and Haho (valued at CFA53.3 million), and the "La Francophonie with Elles" initiative. The latter supported four Togolese projects with around CFA107 million.
CFA450 million for public reading
Over the same period, the OIF also supported public reading with over CFA450 million allocated for "the French language in the service of cultures and education." This includes support for the operation, animation, and monitoring of the first network of 12 Centers for Reading and Cultural Animation (CLAC); as well as helping set up the second CLAC network in Togo.
According to Prof. Kangni Alemdjrodo, the various projects "highlight the vitality and visibility of this cooperation" between Togo and the OIF; a cooperation "which is emerging as a true instrument of support for our development programs."
The OIF implements Francophone multilateral cooperation in 88 states and governments worldwide. The organization was established in 1970 in Niamey on March 20 (under the name of the Agency for Cultural and Technical Cooperation (ACCT)).
This year, for the day of the Francophone, on March 20, the organization picked the theme: “Creating, Innovating, and Enterprising in French”.
Ayi Renaud Dossavi
Tax digitalization: Lomé hosts regional workshop
Lomé hosts this week a 7-day regional workshop on tax digitalization. Organized by the IMF’s Regional Centre for Technical Support (AFRITAC), the meeting aims to bolster financial and macroeconomic capacities in West Africa, with a focus on digitalization.
Representatives from the eight WAEMU States, Guinea, Mauritania, and experts from the IMF’s Financial Affairs Department and the AFRITAC are taking part in the workshop. The theme is “Digitalization Strategies to Enhance Population Control in West Africa”, and the goal is to help concerned countries enhance their tax base control through digitalization.
At the workshop’s launch, Akou Afidenyigba, the cabinet director of the Togolese Minister of Finance, emphasized Togo’s efforts regarding digitalization.
Among others, he mentioned the launch of a national strategy for digitalization, in line with the government’s roadmap. The 2025 Togo Digital Strategy includes initiatives like the Novissi cash transfer program and the e-ID Togo project. The former supports the country’s most vulnerable people and the latter aims to provide each citizen with a unique biometric ID number.
AFRITAC’s West African branch was born in 2003. Based in Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire), it aims to meet African leaders’ demand for greater technical support. The Centre supports five regional institutions and 10 member States, knowingly: Togo, Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Senegal.
Togo seeks to trade more with Burkina Faso
Various ministers from Togo and Burkina Faso held a meeting last week in Lomé. The two sides talked about their mutual desire to boost their trade relationship. To do this, they want to focus on fluidifying movement along the Lomé-Ouagadougou corridor.
On the occasion, the participants identified some roadblocks to this ambition and made some recommendations to overcome them.
Nous avons, avec mes collègues chargés du commerce, et de l'économie maritime, reçu ce mercredi 13 mars 2024, une délégation Burkinabè conduite par le ministre des transports.
— Affoh ATCHA-DEDJI (@AffohAtcha) March 14, 2024
Cette rencontre d'échanges vise à faciliter les transports sur le corridor crucial Lomé - Ouagadougou.… pic.twitter.com/jaPEnrm9OJ
The stakes are high for Togo since Burkina Faso is one of its biggest trade partners. According to the National Institute of Statistics of Togo (INSEED), Burkina Faso was the country’s second-biggest client in Q4 2023. That quarter, the exports from Togo to Burkina Faso were valued at CFA21.6 billion.
Before the meeting with the Burkinabe delegation, Togo held a similar meeting with Niger’s officials. The goal was the same: to bolster trade between the two nations.
Esaïe Edoh
Togo: 70 health centers under construction in Kara, Central, and Plateaux regions
Seventy new health centers are being built across Togo's Kara, Plateaux, and Central regions. Jean-Marie Tessi, Minister of Universal Health Access, kicked off the works at the end of last week, in Kuma-Adame (Kloto prefecture).
Building the facilities falls under the SSEQCU, a project that aims to make basic health services accessible to all.
Before the construction began, the government issued a tender to recruit businesses that would carry out the works.
The facilities will cost CFA8.3 billion to build and should be completed within six months.
According to Minister Tessi the health centers will help provide quality health services to the most vulnerable people across the country. They thus contribute to the government’s Universal Healthcare project which entered its operational phase last January.
Esaïe Edoh
Togo: Domestic receivables stood at CFA1,955 billion in 2023, up 6% YoY
In Togo, domestic receivables stood at CFA1,955 billion in 2023. They were up by 6% year-on-year. The figures were disclosed last week by the Minister of Finance, Sani Yaya, at the latest meeting of the National Credit Council (CNC in French). Domestic receivables are loans that banks and decentralized finance systems give private companies and State institutions.
Sani Yaya noted that the private sector absorbed 89% of the receivables. From this share, MSMEs secured 39% in 2023, against 28% and 38% in 2021 and 2022, respectively.
According to the Finance Minister, the interest rates on loans to MSMEs fell year-on-year. “Interest rates served on credits granted to Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises came out at 8.3%, 9.0%, and 8.5%, respectively, in 2023, down 20 basis points for Micro and Small Enterprises and 50 basis points for Medium-sized Enterprises."
Yaya attributed the “positive change” to banking players and their commitment to bolstering the national economy, by making the private sector a key vector of development.
Meanwhile, the CNC claimed the increase in the number of lending institutions played a significant role as well. Indeed, by the end of 2023, the country had 250 active bank branches, and 372 ATMs (remote and on-site).
Over the same period, the number of microfinance institution service outlets in the country reached 611.
Esaïe Edoh
Food System Resilience Program: Togo recorded over 260,000 direct beneficiaries in 2023
The World Bank-backed West Africa Food System Resilience Program (FSRP) directly benefited 261,501 people in 2023. That is around 160,000 more than aimed for the year reviewed.
The program’s goal is to make actors of the food system of the country, farmers mainly, more resilient and to help beneficiaries better tackle food insecurity.
The project focuses on three axes: investment in climate-smart agriculture at the farm and landscape level; promoting an enabling environment for value chain development and intra-regional trade, and strengthening regional capacity to manage agricultural risks.
At the regional level, the FSRP directly impacted 1.28 million people, 37% of whom are women.
Deployed in seven countries, the program benefits from overall funding of $570 million, with additional funding in some countries.
Ayi Renaud Dossavi
Togo: IFC investments set to pass $80 million by June 2024 (forecast)
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) projects that its investments in Togo will exceed $80 million by June 2024.
In a recent meeting with Togo’s Prime Minister, Victoire Tomegah-Dogbe, the IFC Director for West Africa, Olivier Buyoya, disclosed the forecast. They met last Thursday, March 14.
“We opened our office here in Lomé four years ago. We are very proud to say that this fiscal year, which ends in June 2024, we expect our funding portfolio to exceed $80 million,” Buyoya said.
“Three years ago, we were around $5 million in investments,” he added.
Coming soon: A workshop to bolster local businesses
During the meeting, the IFC executive also unveiled that the Corporation planned to hold a regional workshop for local IFC-backed businesses.
"We have set up a program to support national champions. These are the Togolese companies that today struggle daily to create and maintain jobs. Our program will not only provide them with dedicated financing but also help them develop their projects," said Olivier Buyoya. Before adding: "We have communicated to Madam Prime Minister that we have chosen Lomé for the first workshop on this program at the regional level."
In Togo, the IFC invests in various sectors, such as internet connectivity (Axian and Togocom), energy (Zener), and mobility (Gozem).
Ayi Renaud Dossavi
WAEMU Securities: Togo nears CFA200 billion raised so far this year
Togo raised CFA34 billion on the WAEMU market last Friday. The country’s treasury obtained the funds through a simultaneous issue of fungible treasury bonds and bills (OATs and BATs in French).
Overall, 16 investors subscribed to the operation, raising CFA35 billion, out of which the Togolese treasury retained CFA34 billion.
According to the operation’s report, the treasury secured CFA28 billion through the BATs and CFA6 billion through the OATs. The former mature over 364 days and have multiple interest rates while the latter mature over 3 and 5 years at respective annual rates of 6.15% and 6.40%.
Including this recent issue, Togo has secured CFA194 billion on the regional money market so far this year. This is around 32% of its annual target which is CFA607 billion. The funds will finance the national budget which stands at CFA2,179 billion, expenses and revenues.
Esaïe Edoh
Togo: Government foresees significant drop in inflation in 2024
Inflation in Togo should keep falling this year. According to the government, it should drop to 2.7%, from 5.3% in 2023.
Sani Yaya, Minister of Finance, disclosed the forecast in the latest meeting of the National Council of Credit (CNC in French). During the roundtable, stakeholders also discussed progress on the economic, financial, and monetary fronts in 2023, as well the macroeconomic outlook for 2023-2028.
The government based its forecast on various reforms it introduced, as well on investments in key projects.
“The inflation rate is expected at 2.7% in 2024, after standing at 5.3% in 2023 and 7.6% in 2022,” Sani Yaya declared. In his opinion, the drop would be fostered by “lower inflationnary tensions worldwide and an improved local supply of food products”.
Lomé also foresees greater trust in the country’s economic stability, driven by incentives for mico, small, and medium sized enterprises (MSMEs). Such incentives include increasing lending at lower rates.
According to the National Institute of Statistics, the INSEED, Togo recorded an inflation rate of 4.7% in February 2024, against 4.8% the month before.
Ayi Renaud Dossavi
Togo: Major bridge construction project to begin tomorrow
The government will kick off tomorrow, March 19, the construction of 21 bridges in the countryside. Togo First learned from a reliable source that President Faure Gnassinbé would launch the project. Matière, a French company, is in charge of the works.
The project is set to begin in Kolidè, in the Ogou 2 municipality (Plateaux region).
With the bridges, rural people in the concerned areas will be able to access basic socio-economic facilities and services with more ease. They will also have more ease selling their farm products.
The project covers all five regions of Togo. France cofinanced it with €78 million. Last June, the Togolese Minister of Finance, Sani Yaya, and the French Ambassador to Togo, Augustin Favereau, signed the financing agreement.
Esaïe Edoh