Togo: The government is looking to set up a free-trade area in its textile and clothing sector

Economic governance

Monday, 11 July 2022 14:31

Togo: The government is looking to set up a free-trade area in its textile and clothing sector

(Togo First) - The government of Togo wants to set up a free-trade zone in its textile and clothing sector. The Council of Ministers held last Wednesday examined and adopted a draft bill that aligns with this goal.

“This draft bill defines an incentive framework for the textile and clothing industries. It is part of efforts to make the legislative framework for investment more attractive, hence accelerating the transformation of the national economy, enhancing job creation and social inclusion amidst the implementation of the Industrial Platform Adetikope (PIA),” the government noted.

This will, the authorities add, especially “equip our country with a real tool to rapidly set up textile and clothing industries, and bolster this sector which has a high labor intensity.”

It should be recalled that the PIA is looking to set up a textile factory. Earlier this year, it also partnered with the ANPE to train 1,000 young Togolese (from 18 to 30 years old) in textile works.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

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 .

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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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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.