Togo: Parliament adopts amended finance bill

Public finance

Friday, 12 November 2021 16:21

Togo: Parliament adopts amended finance bill

(Togo First) - On Thursday, the Togolese parliament adopted, unanimously, the 2021 amended finance bill which increased the State budget from CFA1,521 billion to CFA1,702 billion, up 11.9%. The amendment is attributable to economic conditions that were more favorable than the government had expected for this year.

"After budget analysis, it appears that despite the persistence of the coronavirus health crisis, several socio-economic sectors have been recovering. This augurs a favorable macroeconomic outlook, and confirms the transition to a strong economic recovery,” the National Assembly said.

More favorable economic conditions plus a boost from IMF

In addition to improved tax earnings, the government received around August financial support from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in the form of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs).

"The budget bill that you just adopted makes it possible to take into account more favorable macroeconomic projections than expected" due to "the economic situation, a stronger economic activity in 2021 and its positive impact on the mobilization of resources, in particular tax revenues and cash resources linked to the collection of special drawing rights from the International Monetary Fund up to CFA111.7 billion,” Sani Yaya, the minister of finance, told deputies following the vote.

"By passing this amended bill, you are giving the government the means to act. This being said, the government plans to keep implementing structural reforms aimed at stabilizing the macroeconomic framework and consolidating public finances, feats that will require greater efficiency in managing public spending,” Yaya added.

The increased budget, the official stressed, will enable Lomé to sustain reforms that will help improve the business climate, but also accelerate the implementation of socio-economic measures identified across all socio-economic sectors existing in the country.

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.