Organized Crime: Which countries have the highest levels in West Africa?

Security

Wednesday, 06 October 2021 15:15

Organized Crime: Which countries have the highest levels in West Africa?

(Togo First) - The Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime released last week its Global Organized Crime Index. This study, developed over two years, evaluates levels of crime and resilience in all 193 UN member states.

The index evaluates countries according to their criminality on a score of 1 to 10, lowest to highest organized crime levels, based on their criminal markets score and criminal actors score, and their resilience to organized crime.

Togo

Twenty-fourth (24th) in Africa and 4th in the WAEMU, Togo has a score of 5.33. It comes just before Benin (26th in Africa with 5.25), Guinea (27th in Africa with 5.2), and Senegal (34th in Africa, with a score of 4.81, the lowest in WAEMU).

Across the Union, Côte d’Ivoire had the highest score (6.15), and was ranked 11th in Africa and 36th worldwide. Next comes Niger (6.01), Mali (16th in Africa with a score of 5.89), and Burkina Faso (21st in Africa with a score of 5.49).

Togo’score is below West Africa’s average of 5.47.

Nigeria, number one in West Africa

In West Africa and the ECOWAS, Nigeria has the highest score, 7.15. It is right behind DRC which has the highest score in Africa (7.75). The least impacted African country is Sao Tomé & Principe, with a score of 1.78 over 10.

East Africa is the part of the continent where organized crime is most prevalent (5.66). It is followed by West Africa (5.47), Central Africa (5.11), North Africa (4.8), and Southern Africa (4.67).

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

2021 Ranking of West African Countries with Highest Levels of Organized Crime

World	Africa	West Africa	Country	Score
5.	2	1	NIGERIA	7.15
*36.*	11	2	*CÔTE D'IVOIRE*	*6.15*
*41.*	14	3	*GHANA*	*6.01*
*41.*	15	4	*NIGER*	*6.01*
*49.*	16	5	*MALI*	*5.89*
*67.*	21	6	*BURKINA FASO*	*5.49*
*68.*	22	7	*GUINEA BISSAU*	*5.45*
*71.*	23	8	*SIERRA LEONE*	*5.4*
*72.*	24	9	*TOGO*	*5.33*
*76.*	26	10	*BENIN*	*5.25*
78.	27	11	GUINEA	5.2
*100.*	33	12	*GAMBIA*	*4.83*
*102.*	34	13	*SENEGAL*	*4.81*
119	40	14	*MAURITANIA*	*4.38*
*141.*	44	15	*CABO VERDE*	*4.04*

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.