Togo and Ghana Customs Brokers Seal Cross-Border Trade Pact

Economic governance

Tuesday, 30 September 2025 07:17

Togo and Ghana Customs Brokers Seal Cross-Border Trade Pact

(Togo First) - • UPRAD-Togo and GIFF signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen cooperation and harmonize practices.
• Bilateral trade between Togo and Ghana reached $448 million in 2023, with Togo’s exports growing 22.2% annually over five years.
• Officials called for stronger legislative and regulatory frameworks to ease cross-border trade.

The Union des Professionnels Agréés en Douane (UPRAD-Togo) signed a memorandum of understanding on September 29 with the Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders (GIFF). The deal aims to strengthen collaboration, promote knowledge sharing, and facilitate cross-border exchanges.

Officials from both organizations endorsed the agreement, which also seeks to encourage continuous training, improve information exchange, and harmonize professional practices to meet international trade standards.

Patrick Magnon, president of UPRAD, said the protocol represents a chance to enhance skills, raise service quality, and support trade facilitation between the two countries.

“The signing of this protocol is an opportunity for us to strengthen our competencies, improve the quality of our services, and effectively contribute to the facilitation of exchanges between Togo and Ghana, for the benefit of all economic operators in the sub-region,” Magnon said.

GIFF president Stephen Adzorkatse emphasized the importance of stronger public policies. He urged governments to introduce legislative and regulatory measures that support trade facilitation and cross-border cooperation.

The partnership comes as trade flows between Togo and Ghana continue to grow. In 2023, Togo exported $187 million worth of goods to Ghana, while Ghana shipped $261 million in goods to Togo.

Over the past five years, Togo’s exports to Ghana have surged at an average rate of 22.2% annually, rising from $68.5 million in 2018 to $187 million in 2023. Ghana’s exports to Togo grew by 9.95% per year on average, increasing from $163 million in 2018 to $261 million in 2023.

REFORMS OVERVIEW

STARTING A BUSINESS (more info)

At the fifteenth position, worldwide, and first in Africa, under the Starting a Business index of the 2020 Doing Business ranking, Togo sustains its reformative dynamics with more reforms….

ENFORCING CONTRACTS (more info)

Compared to some years ago when it was one of the lowest rankers under the Doing Business’ Enforcing Contracts indicator, Togo, leveraging many efforts to improve its business climate, was able to jump significantly on the index in the recent years... .

CONTRACT EXECUTION (more info)

Creation of special chambers of commerce for small debts • Creation of chambers of commerce at the Court of Appeal • Civil and commercial cases now handled by distinct clerks • Establishment of commercial courts in Lomé and Kara • Lawyers and bailiffs now have access to the FORSETI COMMERCIAL platform • A maximum period of 100 days was fixed to settle a commercial dispute .

TRADING ACROSS BORDERS (more info)

In comparison to previous years,Togo has significantly improved its ranking under the“Trading across borders” indicator by adopting multiple reforms that focus mainly on the digitization and reduction in delays, for import and export procedures related to import and export.

In comparison to previous years, Togo has significantly improved its ranking on the “Trading across borders” index by adopting multiple reforms that focus mainly on the digitalization and reduction in delays, for import and export procedures related to import and export.

CONSTRUCTION PERMIT (more info)

After moving from the 133rd to 127th place under the 2020 Doing Business’ construction permit index, Togo intends to reiterate this feat in the coming edition of the global ranking. To this end, it has introduced this year multiple reforms.

GETTING ELECTRICITY (more info)

Over the past two years, Togo’s ranking under the Doing Business’ Getting electricity and water indicator has increased consistently. Owing this performance to multiple reforms aimed at making it easier for businesses to access power and water, Lomé plans to introduce even more reforms this year to keep up its improvements.

REGISTERING A PROPERTY (more info)

Out of all the 'Doing Business’ indicators, Property Registration is where Togo has improved the most since 2018. Indeed, after spending years in the lowest part of this ranking, the country now seeks to beat Rwanda which is the best performer on this index in Africa. To do so, Lomé has been introducing many reforms, with the latest batch implemented this year.

PUBLIC PROCUREMENT (more info)

From professionalization to digitization, through legislative regulations, Togo’s public procurement framework is constantly being modernized. Several reforms have been implemented to improve the sector much to the benefit of the private sector, which is the focus of the National Development Plan.

PAYING TAXES AND DUTIES (more info)

To improve its business environment, Togo introduced some important reforms related to the payment of tax and duties. From the replacement of some taxes to the cancellation of others through exemptions, the country has only one objective: offer the most attractive tax framework to investors and economic operators. To achieve this, the authorities relied on digitization.