Togo: Budget allocated to education has increased seven-fold in the past 15 years

Education

Wednesday, 12 February 2020 13:49

Togo: Budget allocated to education has increased seven-fold in the past 15 years

(Togo First) - In 2019, the government of Togo spent XOF174 billion in the education sector alone. This is a tremendous increase compared to the sum allocated to this sector in 2005, knowingly XOF25 billion.

Most of the monies injected in the sector in the past 15 years were dedicated to recruiting (+48% more teachers over the period). Total wages paid to the teaching staff also improved considerably, from XOF51 billion in 2005 to XOF163 billion.

Additionally, more than 20,000 new classrooms were built since 2005 while the income of higher education professors was raised (between 2012 and 2019, the pay of assistant professors doubled from XOF205,539 to XOF518,352).

The efforts of the authorities to advance education were actually confirmed by external observers, such as the World Bank and UNICEF. The first indicated that Togo records one of the best rates of completion of primary school across the region. For the second, UNICEF, it said in a report released in September 2014 that “education is considered by the Togolese government as a priority sector and the budget it allocates to this sector proves it.”

“In 2011, public spending in education amounted to XOF73.4 billion, which represented 27.6% of the State’s current expenditures excluding debt, or 4.3% of the GDP.” This is far more than sums invested in the same sector by countries having the same per capita income.

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.