Togo Secures €200 Million Guarantee from AfDB for First Sustainable Financing Facility

Finance

Monday, 02 December 2024 12:41

Togo Secures €200 Million Guarantee from AfDB for First Sustainable Financing Facility

(Togo First) - Togo has secured a €200 million partial credit guarantee (PCG) from the African Development Bank (AfDB) to support its first sustainable financing initiative. This move aligns Togo with other African nations like Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, and Rwanda, which have recently utilized this funding tool to finance green and social projects at lower costs.

The AfDB's Board of Directors approved the guarantee. The facility will help Togo raise funds from international banks on competitive terms, and these funds will help support key priority sectors outlined in Togo's Sustainable Financing Framework.

Validated by S&P in October 2024, the Togolese framework aims to direct investments toward environmentally friendly and socially responsible projects. It includes 14 categories of eligible expenditures across five climate and environmental areas and nine priority social sectors, targeting vulnerable populations.

These sectors include biodiversity preservation, climate change adaptation, sustainable agriculture, access to clean energy, education, digital inclusion, and social security.

Ahmed Attout, Director of Financial Sector Development at the AfDB Group, noted that this intervention would “ contribute to deepening financial markets through Togo's first-ever sustainable financing, as well as broadening and diversifying the country's investor base.” Wilfrid Abiola, head of the AfDB country office for Togo, added that this operation would “support Togo's structural transformation and economic diversification while creating decent jobs and strengthening the country's socio-economic resilience.”

Togo isn’t the only African nation to have secured the AfDB’s partial credit guarantee for sustainable projects. Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, and Rwanda also did. The first three secured €500 million (Benin, in 2021), €400 million, and €500 million (Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal, in 2023). Rwanda secured €200 million earlier this year.

Fiacre E. Kakpo

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.