Togo

Official Sites of Togo



The entry to the new complex of the National Assembly in Lomé. The building was a gift from the Chinese government. In return, Chinese companies are allowed to exploit Togo's mineral resources.^{[Liberté] [Kapital Afrik]}
Image: Assemblée Nationale Togolaise


Politics of Togo
Togo is a multiparty parliamentary republic with a president as head of state. The president appoints the prime minister, who serves as head of government. Legislative power is exercised by the National Assembly.
Although multiparty elections have been held regularly since 1992, Togo's politics have been controlled since 1963 by the late Gnassingbé Eyadéma and his son, the current president, Faure Gnassingbé.
Advantages such as security services dominated by the president's ethnic group (Kabye) and malapportioned (inequitable or unsuitable divided) constituencies have helped Gnassingbé and his party remain in power. ^{[FreedomHouse]}


Government
Note: External links will open in a new browser window.


République Togolaise
The official Portal of the Republic of Togo (in French and partly in English).

National Assembly Togo
The official website of the Assembly Togo

Ministère des Affaires Etrangères
Ministry of Foreign Affairs Togo.

Diplomatic Missions
Ambassade du Togo en France
The Embassy of the Togolese Republic in France.
Embassy of Togo in Washington, D.C.
Official Representation of the Republic of Togo in the United States.
Togo Embassy in London
The Togolese Embassy to the UK in London.
Honorarkonsulat der Republik Togo in Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland und Hessen
Togolese Honorary Consulate in Germany.
Diplomatic Missions of Togo
List of Diplomatic Missions of Togo Abroad.
Foreign Diplomatic Missions in Togo
List of Foreign Consulates and Embassies in Lomé, Togo.
Embassy of the United States of America Lome, Togo
Official site of the U.S. Embassy.

Statistics
Directorate General of Statistics
Togo in numbers.
 

Maps from Togo



Map of Togo (click map to enlarge)
Image: © nationsonline.org

Maps

Map of Togo
Political map of Togo and surrounding countries with international borders,
region boundaries, region capitals, major cities and towns, main roads, railroads and airports.
Administrative Map of Togo
Map showing Togo's administrative divisions.

Google Earth Togo
Searchable map and satellite view of Togo.
Google Earth Lomé
Searchable map and satellite view of Togo's capital city.

Political Map of Africa
The 54 countries of Africa.
Map of Africa
A Relief Map of Africa.

 

News of Togo

Online News from Togo

Togo has a densely populated media landscape, but the state media still struggle to provide an adequate public news service. Freedom of the press is guaranteed in the constitution but inconsistently upheld in practice. Although numerous independent media outlets offer a variety of viewpoints, restrictive press laws and a history of impunity for those who commit crimes against journalists encourage self-censorship.


Togolese newspapers

Agence Togolaise de Presse
ATOP, the Togolese news agency is based in Lomé.

L'Alternative
Critical bi-weekly, suspended by the government. ^[Article19]

Liberté
A Togolese daily.

Fraternité
A Togolese weekly - critical of the government.

Journal du Togo

République Togolaise
"Official" Togo news, partly in English.

Togo-First
Economic and public management news.

Togo Presse
The "Grand quotidien national d'information"

UFC Togo
Union des Forces de Changement shows archived articles about Togo (in French).


International News Sources - Togo

Africanews
Togo related news by africanews.

Africa Times
Africa Times with news and information on Togo (in English).

Al Jazeera
Togo related news by Al Jazeera.

BBC News - Togo
Togo related articles by the BBC.

The Guardian - Togo
Togo related news by UK's The Guardian.

France 24 - Togo
French state-owned TV network with news related to Togo.

Le Monde - Togo
News from Togo by the French newspaper Le Monde.

 

Arts & Culture of Togo



An example of the exceptional works of art from West Africa, known as Benin Bronze, now in the hands of major European museums.
Image: British Museum

Arts & Culture

Ministry of Culture and Tourism
The official website of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Musée Africart
The official website of the Museum Africart.

Association Culturelle Zota
Togolese Group of singers, percussionists, and dancers (in French).

Batir Le Togo
"Bâtir Le Togo," in English Build Togo, is an organization created by members of the various student organizations and human rights advocacy groups that shook the dictatorship in place in Togo in the early nineties, and that set in motion the course of democratization in the country since then. (in French and English)



The Akodésséwa Fetish Market takes place 24/7 in Akodésséwa, a suburb of Lomé in Togo, and is considered the largest voodoo market in the world.
Image: Alexander Sarlay
 

Business & Economy of Togo


Colorful market activity in Kara, a city on the Kara River and capital of the Togolese region of Kara.
Image: Grete Howard


Economy of Togo
Subsistence agriculture and trade are the most important economic sectors in Togo. The majority of the country's labor force is employed in food and crop production. The major crops grown are corn, sorghum, rice; major exports are coffee, cocoa, and cotton.
Togo's main industry is phosphate mining.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) ranks Togo as the tenth poorest country in the world, with an estimated 55% of the population living below the poverty line and more than half experiencing food insecurity. The situation is exacerbated by an annual population growth rate of 2.5%, which is hampering development progress.



Ministry of Economy and Finance
The Official Ministry of Economy and Finance.

Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO)
Central Bank of Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo.

Union Économique et Monétaire Ouest Africaine (UEMOA)
West African Economic and Monetary Union (in French)

IZF.net, le portail de la Zone Franc CFA
Information about business and investment in the African countries within the monetary system of the Franc Zone - CFA. (in French)

Jeune Chambre Internationale - JCI Lome Prestige
Organization for young entrepreneurship in Togo (in French).

Chambre de Commerce et d'Industrie du Togo
Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Togo (in French)


Major companies in Togo

Atlantic Bank Group
Atlantic Bank Group, commonly known by its French name Groupe Banque Atlantique, is a West African financial services conglomerate headquartered in Lome, Togo.

Ecobank
Ecobank, official name Ecobank Transnational Inc. (ETI), is a pan-African banking conglomerate with banking operations in 36 African countries. ETI is the leading regional banking group in West and Central Africa, serving both wholesale and retail customers.

HeidelbergCement
HeidelbergCement, headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany, is a global manufacturer of cement and aggregates. It operates three companies in Togo.

Société Nouvelle des Phosphates du Togo
SNPT is a Togolese company based in Kpémé that mines calcium phosphate, a raw material for the fertilizer industry. Phosphates were Togo's most important export for a long time.

La Poste du Togo
La Poste du Togo is the company that operates the postal service in Togo.


Telecommunications
Moov
Moov Africa Togo, a subsidiary of Maroc Telecoms, is a telecommunications service provider in Lomé.

Togocom
Togocom is an operator of fixed and mobile telecommunications solutions in Togo.


Transportation

Airlines
Formerly there were three airlines in Togo: Africa West Airlines (cargo; ceased operations in 2013), Air Horizon (ceased operations after three years in service in 2007) and Air Togo (the country's flag carrier ceased operations in 2000).


Asky Airlines
ASKY Airlines is a private multinational passenger airline and a strategic partner of Ethiopian Airlines. It operates flights in West and Central Africa, has its headquarters in Lomé and its hub at Gnassingbé Eyadéma International Airport.

Ports
Port Autonome de Lomé
The autonomous port of Lomé is the only deep-water port in West Africa. The port of Lomé also serves the landlocked countries of Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali.



Nouveau Port de Peche, the new fishing port of Lomé, is part of the autonomous port of the capital; its port cranes are barely visible in the haze in the background.
Image: BenSim7

Tourism in Togo



Granaries of the Nok and Mamproug Caves, ancient caves in the mountains of the Tandjouaré Prefecture in the Savanes Region, northern Togo.
Image: atosan - Adobe Stock

Destination Togo - Travel and Tour Guides

Discover Togo:
Togo's region: Maritime Togo, Plateaux, Centrale, Kara and Savanes Region, Lomé (capital), Togo(ville) (the village after which the land was named), Aného (Little Popo), Agbodrafo (Porto Seguro), Lac Togo (lagoon), Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba, Sokodé (Togo's second city),
Kpalime, starting point for visits to Mont Agou and Kpime waterfall.
Togo's three National Parks: Fosse aux Lions National Park, Oti-Kéran National Park, Fazao Malfakassa National Park.


Office National Togolais du Tourisme
The National Togolese Office of Tourism, with country guide and information (in French and English).

Voyage au Togo
A local tour operator provides tourist information about Togo (in French).

Mon Voyage au Benin et au Togo
Private site about traveling Benin and Togo with photos (in French).

Wikivoyage: Togo
Travel guide to Togo with its regions, cities and attractions.




Cascade de Kpimé - Kpime waterfall near Kpalimé, in the Plateaux Region in southwest Togo.
Image: jbdodane

UNESCO World Heritage Sites



Mud tower-houses Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba.
Image: atosan - Adobe Stock
 

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Togo
To date, there is one UNESCO World Heritage Site in Togo. Additionally, seven properties are listed in UNESCO's Tentative List, an inventory of those properties which each state party intends to consider for nomination. (see the List of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Togo).

The following links lead to a detailed description of the respective World Heritage Site at UNESCO.

Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba
The Koutammakou landscape, located in northeastern Togo and extending across the border into Benin, is home to the Batammariba, whose remarkable mud tower-houses (takienta) have become a symbol of Togo.
In this cultural landscape, nature is closely linked to the rituals and beliefs of the people who live there.
The 500 km² region owes its appearance to the farmlands and forests and to the takienta, the fortress-like mud houses that reflect the social structure and the connection between the people and the landscape. Many buildings are two-story; the dwellings are grouped into villages which also include ceremonial spaces, springs, sacred rocks and sites reserved for initiation ceremonies.



Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba. A clay castle of the Tamberma (Tammari), animist people who believe in Kuiye, the sun god and creator, Butan, the goddess of the earth and the underworld and Oyinkakwata, the spirit of the sky. The Tamberma build ancestral shrines (liboloni) to protect their homes and scatter fetishes and amulets in the village, houses and fields.
Image: Dodé Houehounha © UNESCO
 

Education in Togo



Entry to the University of Lomé (UL). The Université de Lomé is the largest university in Togo. The public institution is located at Boulevard Gnassingbé Eyadema in Lomé, Togo's capital. Its enrollment is estimated at 45,000 students.
Image: idris baba


The Togolese school system is public, secular, free and, in theory, compulsory from the age of 6 to 15.
Despite a general literacy rate (population above the age of 15) of 63.7% in 2015, the 15-24 year old generation was improving compared to previous generations, with a rate of around 85% for this category.

American International School of Lome
Provides a US-style educational program to the international community in Lome.

The British School of Lomé
Boarding and Day School British style.

Université de Lomé (UL)
Official website of the university (in French).

University of Kara (UK)
Official website of the university (in French). 

List of universities in Togo
Wikipedia's short list of universities in Togo.
 

Environment & Nature



The village of Djigbe on Mont Agou. With its 986 meters, Mont Agou is the highest mountain in Togo. Located southeast of Kpalimé near the border with Ghana, it is an inselberg to the south of the main ridge of the Atakora Range.
Image: Jean MKA


Ministry of Environment, Sustainable Development, and Nature Protection of Togo
The official website of the Ministry of Environment and Nature.

Environmental Impact of Iron Smelting in the Bassar Region of Togo
A deforestation problem in precolonial West Africa.

L'Observatoire de la Faune et de la Flore des Aires Protégées du Togo (OFFAP)
NGO - The Observatory of Fauna and Flora of the Protected Areas is an association that aims to safeguard biodiversity and natural resources in Togo, specifically species and natural sites and/or heritage threatened. (in French)

Togo Nature Environnement
NGO involved in development projects like reforestation and as well as education of the Togolese people about environment and development. (in French)

 

Togo History



Map of Togo-Land - The German Protectorate on the Slave Coast (1855).
Map: Scottish Geographical Magazin

Like many African countries, Togo's history is one of migration, conquests, ethnic conflicts, colonization, independence, strongman rule, failed coups and a democracy hampered by corruption.

Among the tribes migrating from the north between the 7th and 12th centuries were the Kabye (Kabre), the Lambas and small numbers of Hausa who brought Islam to Togo. The Ewe, one of the major groups in Togo, came from the Yoruba area in modern-day southwestern Nigeria and Benin and first settled in the Mono River valley. The northern part of Togo was, for a long time, under the influence of Islamic kingdoms, such as that of Umar Tal (Tukulor empire) in the 19th century.

During the period known as the "Scramble for Africa," in 1884, the territory of what is now Togo, including most of today's Volta region of Ghana, became a protectorate of the German Empire named Togoland, until August 1914 when French and British troops invaded said Togoland. In 1922, Togoland was divided into a French and a British administrative zone under a League of Nations mandate. In 1946, the two zones became United Nations trust territories. French Togoland became independent as the Republic of Togo in 1960.


History of Togo
About Togo's history by National Togolese Tourism Office. (in French)

History of Togo
Wikipedia entry for History of Togo in many languages.
 

Indigenous People of Togo



Habye, a religious festival of the Kabyé of Kozah. It is a magical demonstration dance, an opportunity to demonstrate the occult strength of the sorcerers. The festival takes place every five years in November.
Image: SALIFOU


Adja-Ewe/Mina 42.4%, Kabye/Tem 25.9%, Para-Gourma/Akan 17.1%, Akposso/Akebu 4.1%, Ana-Ife 3.2%,

There are between 20 and 40 different ethnic groups in Togo, depending on differing classifications. No group has a numerical majority. A northern group, the Kabyé, has dominated the country's politics and is the second-largest group in Togo (after the Éwé), with some 14 percent of the population.

Ewe people
The Ewe people are a Gbe ethnic group. The largest population of Ewe people is in Ghana (6 million), and the second-largest population in Togo (3.1 million)

Kabye people
The Kaye, also known as Kabye, Kabre, Cabrai', live in the north-central mountains and the northern plains of Togo. They speak the Kabiye language. The Kabye are primarily known for farming and cultivation of Togo's harsh, dry, infertile lands.

Losso people
The Lossos are an ethnic and linguistic group of people living in the Doufelgou District (Préfecture) of the Kara Region in Northern Togo, West Africa.

Tem people
The Temba are an ethnic group that is the main population group in the area of the former Kingdom of Kotokoli.
 

Additional Information

Selected country profiles of Togo published by international organizations.


Amnesty International: Togo
Amnesty International is a non-governmental organization focused on human rights.

BBC Country Profile: Togo
Country profiles by the British public service broadcaster.

BTI Transformation Index Togo
Togo Country Report 2020 by Bertelsmann Stiftung.

FAO: Togo
UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

Freedom House: Togo
The U.S. government-funded non-profit organization whose goal is to promote liberal democracies worldwide.

GlobalEDGE: Togo
Togo ranking by the Global business knowledge portal.

The Heritage Foundation: Togo
Index of Economic Freedom by The Heritage Foundation, an American conservative think tank.

Human Rights Watch: Togo
HRW conducts research and advocacy on human rights.

OEC: Togo
The Observatory of Economic Complexity provides the latest international trade data.

Reporters Without Borders: Togo
RSF (Reporters sans frontières) is an international NGO that defends and promotes media freedom.

Wikipedia: Togo
Wikipedia's Togo page in many languages.

World Bank Data: Togo
World Development Indicators database.

The CIA World Factbook -- Togo
CIA World Factbook Togo Page.