Gnassingbé Eyadema Airport: Passenger Traffic Reached 1.4 Million in 2023

Economic governance

Tuesday, 16 July 2024 09:21

Gnassingbé Eyadema Airport: Passenger Traffic Reached 1.4 Million in 2023

(Togo First) - The Gnassingbé Eyadema International Airport (AIGE) had 1.4 million passengers in 2023. This is 52% more than in 2019, when the figure stood at 916,000.

The launch of new flight routes mostly spurred the surge. Six new routes have been launched, two with Ethiopian Airlines and four with Asky, bringing the total number of destinations served worldwide to 41. Additionally, Liz Aviation, a firm owned by Burkina Faso tycoon Mahamadou Bonkoungou, has recently begun serving Ouagadougou, strengthening the country's air offer. The direct Lomé-Washington flight launched in June 2022 by Ethiopian Airlines, which uses AIGE as a transit airport to its base in Addis Ababa and other airports, has also contributed to this dynamic.

The recent peak nears the AIGE’s target for 2025–1.5 million passengers. However, Lomé airport still ranks behind other logistics hubs in the sub-region, notably Abidjan's Félix Houphouët-Boigny International Airport, which recorded 2.3 million passengers in 2023, compared to 2.09 million in 2022, an increase of 11.5%.

The increase in passenger traffic has also boosted Togo's tourism sector. In 2021 and 2022, the country welcomed almost a million visitors, generating revenue of CFA25 billion, compared to just over 480,000 tourists in 2020, at the height of Covid-19, for revenues of CFA19 billion.

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)

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.