Margba attack: The Togolese army admits to having wrongly shot civilians

Security

Friday, 15 July 2022 15:49

Margba attack: The Togolese army admits to having wrongly shot civilians

(Togo First) - Seven civilians were killed and two injured on the night of July 9 to 10, 2022, in Margba, a village located in the Tône prefecture, northern Togo. Subsequently, the Togolese army announced it would investigate the incident.

The investigation revealed that it was the army that accidentally shot the civilians, mostly teenagers, mistaking them for terrorists. “An aircraft on night patrol hit a group of people who were thought to be a column of jihadists on the move,” reads a statement from the army.

“The Togolese army deeply regrets this tragedy and again extends its sincere condolences to the grieving families, and wishes those injured a speedy recovery,” the note adds, while stressing that “necessary measures will be taken to avoid such drama in the future”.

A government delegation visits grieving families

Yesterday, July 14, a delegation from the government visited the grieving families to also extend their condolences and wish a quick recovery for the two who were injured.

Brigadier General Dada Maganawé, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of Togo, in an official note addressing the incident, has reiterated the commitment of his men to serve and protect the people and country, while emphasizing the need to better cooperate with local populations to better protect them.

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.