(Togo First) - Agriculture contributes 40.7% of Togo’s GDP, according to recent statistics released by OECD. It generates 15% of the country’s exports and employs 65% of its active population. However, the nation exploits only 45% of its arable land, that is 3.4 million hectares, and its agricultural processing sector is still embryonic.

Sectors

Togo’s main agricultural exports are coffee, cocoa, cotton and cashew. Cotton generates the most export revenues in the agricultural sector, contributing about 4.3% of GDP. In 2016-17, nearly 108,000 tons of cottonseed were produced. An output that the country wishes to increase to 200,000 tons by 2022. Cashew, which is mainly grown in the central and plateaux regions, recorded an output of 9,000 tons in 2017. In WAEMU, Togo is the second largest producer of the crop, after Côte d’Ivoire. It produces about 8,000 tons of cashew in a year. Concerning coffee, Togo’s output is still below 20,000 tons.

Regarding subsistence farming, the country cultivates cereals (rice, maize, millet, sorghum and fonio), roots and tubers (cassava, yam, sweet potatoes and potatoes) as well as legumes, fruits and vegetables.   

Policies

For some years now, Togolese authorities have been giving a particular attention to agriculture. In fact, after Rwanda, Togo became in July 2009, the second sub-Sahara African nation, and the first in West Africa, to sign up for the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).

In 2010-2015, Togo adopted the national program for agricultural investment and food security (PNIASA in French). This program which aimed at boosting farmers’ productivity and earnings, helped satisfy 110% of the country’s demand in cereals, between 2013 and 2016.

Also, in the framework of the 2017-2026 program for agricultural investment, food and nutritional security (PNIASAN), more than CFA1,250 billion were committed for investments, to bring agricultural GDP up 10%.

Finally, there is the Programme for Governance Support and Agribusiness Promotion (PAGPA) which aims at helping “create necessary conditions for a strong and inclusive agribusiness-driven growth”.