Lomé hosts this week the first synthesis meeting of support missions for the Food System Resilience Program (FSRP) for 2024. Funded by the World Bank, ECOWAS, CILSS, and CORAF, among others, the FSRP aims to improve food security and strengthen agricultural systems in the sub-region.

The meeting began on May 15 and will end on May 17. It brings together FSRP actors and partners who will discuss digital agricultural services, integrated landscape management, and regional trade enhancement. The roundtable aims to draw lessons, consolidate coordination, promote cross-learning, and identify progress and challenges in FSRP implementation.

"The main objective of this meeting is to draw lessons learned from support missions, consolidate coordination of regional and national activities, promote cross-learning, create synergies among all FSRP stakeholders, and identify progress made as well as challenges encountered in FSRP implementation," stated the program coordination.

The event will feature an exhibition of agricultural products and technologies developed by program beneficiaries. Togolese producers will showcase their achievements, highlighting the positive impacts of FSRP.

This evaluation comes after FSRP actions reached approximately 1.3 million direct beneficiaries in 2023, including nearly 40% women, in countries such as Togo, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Sierra Leone, and Chad.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

Togo’s Youth Economic Initiatives Support Fund (FAIEJ) and UNDP, launched ADACE, a mobile app supporting young Togolese entrepreneurship. The digital tool offers business creation resources.

Available on the Play Store, ADACE provides an immersive training journey with simulation games in French, Ewe, and Kabiye. The games cover market studies, technical skills, and financial planning.

The app enables young entrepreneurs to acquire practical skills through realistic, educational scenarios. It automatically generates business plans in PDF format, facilitating project structuring and presentation.

ADACE incorporates an interactive forum for users to exchange ideas with FAIEJ experts and share experiences. A media library completes the tool, offering continuous entrepreneurship resources.

Since 2012, FAIEJ claims to have created over 26,000 sustainable jobs, granting over 8.6 billion CFA francs in loans to young people.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

ANAMET, Togo’s Meteorology Agency,  forecasts the next big rainy season from July to September, with normal to above-normal rainfall. The southern part may experience more abundant rainfall, increasing flood risks. The north will see above-normal to normal rainfall.

These forecasts will impact agriculture, with a late to normal end of the season in the north. The agency advises farmers to sow with the first useful rains and prioritize short-cycle, drought-resistant crops.

Hydrologically, the Oti basin will have above-normal runoff, risking overflow. The upper Mono basin will trend from average to deficit, while the Lake Togo and lower Mono basins will range from average to above-normal.

ANAMET advises against occupying flood-prone areas and rationally managing water resources for hydroelectric dams and hydro-agricultural developments.

The forecasts may change with weather conditions, as clarified by the Agency.

Esaïe Edoh

Niger authorities have introduced new measures regarding freight removal from Togo. The activity is now reserved only for vehicles registered in Niger and Togo. This decision aims to strengthen the Togo-Niger cooperation, amidst rising tensions between Benin and Niger. 

The Nigerien Ministry of Transport and Equipment announced these measures in a May 11 statement.  "These measures are in line with the bilateral agreement on road transport between the Republic of Niger and the Togolese Republic," said Colonel Major Salissou Mahaman Salissou, Secretary-General of the ministry, in a statement released on May 11.

The statement, however, stressed that exceptions may be granted for vehicles from Burkina Faso, Mali, and Ghana with ministerial authorization. "Upon exceptional authorization from the Minister of Transport and Equipment, vehicles registered in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Ghana may also participate in freight removal". 

"Any violator will be subject to sanctions provided for by the regulations in force," the ministry warned.

The move comes amidst regional tensions. Since the sanctions imposed by ECOWAS, including the closure of borders, Niger has used the port of Lomé to transit its goods through Burkina Faso. After the sanctions were lifted, Nigerien and Togolese authorities ramped up efforts to bolster their cooperation, including several incentives for Nigerien operators.

Meanwhile, Niger kept its border with Benin closed, due to political tensions after the Coup that overthrew the Bazoum regime. In response, last week, Benin blocked the loading of Nigerien oil at the port of Sèmè-Podji, demanding that the new Nigerien authorities first normalize bilateral relations by reopening the borders before any shipment of the crucial crude oil, crucial for the Nigerien budget.

The recent announcement by Niger authorities could translate into stronger trade with Togo. Before the recent regional crisis broke out, Niger represented only 5% of transit via the port of Lomé, a share that Lomé has wanted to increase.

Fiacre E. Kakpo

Togo has played a crucial role in improving the economic situation of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), according to WAEMU Commission President Abdoulaye Diop during a meeting with Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé. The two met on May 13, 2024.

Diop noted that the Togolese economy's resilience amid international economic challenges has allowed the WAEMU to maintain its growth momentum. The Union's growth is estimated at nearly 6.0% in 2022, compared to 6.1% and 1.7% in 2021 and 2020, respectively.

The Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO) emphasized that WAEMU remains one of the most dynamic economic zones in sub-Saharan Africa, driven by member states' economic performance. BCEAO projections indicate UEMOA's growth is expected to exceed 6.0% in 2024.

Likewise, Togo is projecting a 6% growth rate this year, according to the African Development Bank (AfDB). This performance demonstrates the strength of the Togolese economy and its positive contribution to UEMOA's overall growth.

Esaïe Edoh

In Togo, several neighborhoods of Lomé, the capital, and other towns, face a new gasoline shortage. The shortage started on May 12, according to the Ministry of Trade. The same source attributes the situation to supply disruptions at some gas stations.

Trade Minister, Rose Mivedor, already announced urgent measures to solve the crisis and return to normalcy. The official, among others, warned gas station managers they would be sanctioned for refusing to sell fuel. 

Mivedor stressed that petroleum product prices at the pump remain unchanged nationwide. This is Togo's third gasoline shortage since September 2023.

Esaïe Edoh

The Constitutional Court of Togo announced the final results of the April 29 legislative elections yesterday, May 13. The ruling party, Union for the Republic (UNIR), secured a dominant victory with 108 out of 113 parliamentary seats, nearly 96% of the total.

Opposition parties claimed the remaining five seats. The Alliance for Democrats for Integral Development (ADDI) secured two, while the Alliance for National Change (ANC), the Dynamic for the Majority of the People (DMP), and the Democratic Forces for the Republic (FDR) had one each.

The voter turnout was 61.76%, with 2,565,623 votes cast out of 4,203,711 registered voters, in line with the Independent National Electoral Commission's (CENI) earlier announcements on May 4, 2024

The Constitutional Court has ordered the results' publication in the Official Journal of the Togolese Republic, with the next step being the convening of the new parliamentary session for the incoming legislature.

Esaïe Edoh

Last week, Togo and France signed an agreement to streamline professional visa processes for France and the Schengen area benefiting both countries' nationals. The agreement was inked in Lomé by the French Ambassador to Togo, Augustin Favereau, and Togolese business and consular leaders.

The partnership will simplify visa applications through concrete measures. A "fast lane" will expedite processing for referenced company employees, while a "direct messaging" channel will facilitate swift resolution of issues.

These developments will reduce administrative bottlenecks to professional travel to France, boosting trade exchanges and economic growth in both countries by fostering worker mobility and strengthening economic ties.

Represented Togolese organizations included the National Council of Employers, the Association of Large Companies, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Union of Regional Chambers of Trades, EUROCHAM Togo, and the Togo Committee of French Foreign Trade Advisors.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi