Togo: Parliament adopts 2023 budget

Economy

Saturday, 24 December 2022 03:39

(Togo First) - On the night of Dec 22-23, the Togolese Parliament adopted the budget for 2023. The bill, which was approved unanimously, totals CFA1,957.9 billion in revenue and expenditure. This is 4.4% more than 2022’s rectifying budget.

Defending the bill during its adoption, Sani Yaya, the minister of finance, talked about the current international context, which is “marked by the persistent effects of the health crisis and the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict”. “These crises”, the official continued, “have spurred strong inflationary pressures and tighter monetary policies, which in turn induced a slowdown of economic activities.”

Yaya was representing the government at the assembly, with Christian Trimua, the minister of human rights and spokesperson of the government

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Social and development-oriented projects

The 2023 budget focuses on social and development-oriented projects. Indeed, 48% of projected spending under the bill will be dedicated to the first axis of the government’s roadmap (Togo 2025). This axis covers inclusion and human capital development ; 35% of projected spending will be dedicated to the roadmap’s second axis which focuses on supporting productive sectors, while the remaining 17% will, according to minister Yaya, help boost the State’s capacities.

Next year, CFA623.4 billion should be allocated to social sectors–thus nearly 49% of the whole budget which is close to CFA2,000 billion. In the 2022 budget, the amount dedicated to these sectors was lower: CFA522.2 billion.

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Private sector gets new support

Besides the social sectors, the government announced several incentives for the private sector. They include the suspension of installment payments if turnover falls sharply or the business shuts down, the exemption of the payment of custom duties and taxes on construction equipment and machinery, the renewal of customs duties and VAT exemption for new electric and hybrid vehicles, and tax abatements for vehicles that are less than five (5) years old.

The measures “reflect the government’s firm commitment to mitigating inflation’s impact on the purchasing power of both public and private sector employees and households and on businesses’ capacity to create wealth and support (Ed.note: economic) growth,” Sani Yaya added.

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 .

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.