Tourism: Togo becomes a must-see destination at the regional level

Economic governance

Monday, 02 October 2023 13:20

Tourism: Togo becomes a must-see destination at the regional level

(Togo First) - Togo is a must-see destination for tourists, according to Kossi Gbégnon Lamadokou, the country’s Minister of Culture and Tourism. The official made the statement last Wednesday, September 27, 2023, on International Tourism Day.

"We can proudly claim that Togo is becoming a must-see destination at the sub-regional level," said Lamadokou. He backed his claim with the number of tourists that Togo receives yearly.

In 2022, one million tourists visited the country. This is the same as in 2021 when 983,969 visitors came, generating CFA25 billion in revenues for Togo.

In 2020, just over 480,000 tourists visited, generating about CFA19 billion.

Minister Lamadokou attributes the improvements to various steps taken by the government to bolster the sector and make it more attractive.

"Making tourism a priority sector in its five-year roadmap is not a decision that the government took randomly, and looking at the current results it was a judicious decision,” said the official.

Since 2020, many steps have been taken to boost tourism in Togo. These include enhancing the Koutammakou cultural heritage site and updating the country’s cultural policy.

Esaïe Edoh

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)

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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)

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