9th Pan-African Congress: Northern African Countries to Take Part in the Upcoming Meeting

Politics

Friday, 19 April 2024 16:56

9th Pan-African Congress: Northern African Countries to Take Part in the Upcoming Meeting

(Togo First) - Northern African countries will also take part in the next Pan-African Congress. The forum will take place at the end of this year in Lomé.

In preparation for the conference, the Northern African countries held on April 18 a hybrid ministerial conference. The Togolese and Moroccan Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Robert Dussey and Nasser Bourita, co-chaired the meeting.

Focused on the theme "Pan-Africanism and Migration," the meeting resulted in the Rabat Declaration, aimed at strengthening the role of Regional Economic Communities in the actions of the African diaspora on the continent.

In practical terms, through the declaration, the North African region calls for "mobilizing migrants and Afro-descendants as part of the renewal of Pan-Africanism around the reform of multilateral institutions and better representation of Africa in global governance."

Through this declaration, North African countries aim to align their national migration management strategies with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union's Agenda 2063.

This declaration will be submitted to the 9th Pan-African Congress scheduled in Lomé from October 29th to November 2nd, bringing together Africans from the continent, the diaspora, and Afro-descendants around the theme: "Revitalizing Pan-Africanism and Africa's Role in Multilateral Institutions Reform: Mobilizing Resources and Reinventing Ourselves to Act.”

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.