Togo

Togo is a Western African country located on the Gulf of Guinea. Togo also shares its border, in this case, the entire length of its western border, with a fellow Commonwealth nation, Ghana. It shares its entire eastern border with Benin and its northern border with Burkina Faso.

Togo is one of the smallest countries in West Africa with a land area of approximately 56,785 km² divided into 6 distinct regions. The capital of Lomé is located on the western edge of the narrow coastal region in the south; sandy, low-lying beaches overlook the Gulf of Guinea and scattered tidal flats and lagoons are seen along the coastline of which Lake Togo is the largest lagoon flowing inland. The southern-central region comprises a tableland called the Outachi Plateau; this plateau and the sediment surrounding Lake Togo are known for the laterite soil and deep reddish colour also known as terre de barre, due to its iron density. Upwards from the plateau in the northeast direction is another tableland though much higher in altitude reaching up to 460 metres in height. The plateau is drained by the Mono River and its tributaries. Towards the northwest direction upwards from the Outachi Plateau, the land rises steeply toward the Togo-Atakora Mountains which stretch across the northeastern region of Togo into the eastern borders of Ghana and end in the western region of Benin. The Baumann Peak, also known as Mount Agou, is the tallest mountain in the range, rising to about 986 metres. The region north of the Togo Mountains consists of a sandstone plateau on top of which is a beautiful expanse of savanna drained by the Oti River which is one of the main tributaries of the Volta River. Found in the eastern part of this region is a cultural landscape; the Koutammakou, the Land of the Tammari people, is an area which features this tribe’s famous two-storey mud houses which to this day remain a preferred structure of living, and in 2004, this territory was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The northern-most region is comprised of granite and gneiss and the cliffs of Dapaong lie in this area.

Demographics

Togo’s population is estimated at approximately 9.9 million as of 2026. There are 37 different ethnic groups, of which the predominant are the Éwé people (including the Aja and Mina-speaking communities) making up around 42% of the total population. The Kabye and Tem people account for approximately 26%, the Gourma and Akan for 17%, with smaller groups including the Kebu-speaking Akposso and Ana-Ife. Christians comprise about 42%, practitioners of folk/indigenous religions around 37%, Muslims approximately 14%, with the remainder following other faiths or none. French remains the official language, spoken fluently by roughly 30–40% of the population. Ewe and Mina are the major African languages spoken nationwide, while Kabye and Dagomba are also widely used. Togo continues to have a vibrant youthful population, with around 60% under the age of 25, and urbanisation has risen to approximately 45% of citizens residing in urban areas.

History

Before German missionaries established trade posts in the Ewe territory in 1847, the region south and east of the Volta River, present day Togo was regarded as a makeshift buffer zone (with ambiguous borders) between the west Africa kingdoms of the Asante and Dahomey. In 1884, German government official, Gustav Nachtigal, persuaded coastal chieftains to accept German protection. The year after, the German protectorate was officially established with its coastal frontiers demarcated according to multiple treaties signed with France and Great Britain between 1888 and 1897. Under these treaties, the town of Lomé at the western coast overlooking the Gulf of Guinea, was chosen as the administrative colonial capital in 1897. In the following years the town underwent industrialisation; a jetty was built in 1904 and subsequently three railways were constructed. Both the government and private German companies developed plantations, the maintenance and development of which was largely left to the local Togolese who were trained by agriculturists at a college established in Notsé, a town in the Plateaux Region of present day Togo. The plantations were thriving, largely focussing on the production of palm products, cotton, cocoa and rubber.

With the start of the First World War in July 1914, the Committee of Imperial Defence suggested Togoland to be the first offensive with troops to be deployed from the Gold Coast and Sierra Leone. The purpose of this first attack was to disable the wireless stations at Kamina, which were critical communication links between Berlin and its African colonies as well as to the shipment operatives in the South Atlantic and South America. The operations, which began on 6 August 1914, were relatively swift and the capital of Lomé and the southern section of Togoland falling under the Allies’ control without any fighting by 8 August. With the British advancing from the west and the French advancing from the north, most of the territory fell under their administration and the Germans surrendered by 26 August. The territory was subsequently divided into eastern and western sections to be administered by Britain and France, respectively. The whole coastline and the entire railway system was given to France under the Anglo-French agreement ratified on 10 July 1919. Once Germany had renounced all sovereignty over Africa, the League of Nations officially issued mandates in 1922 to Britain and France regarding the administration of Togoland. Under the mandates, Britain was to overlook the northern region of Togoland along with the Northern Territories of the Gold Coast and the southern part of the Gold Coast Colony. The French sphere included most of the western region and the bulk of the external railway systems. It remained as a separate unit of its own up until 1934 after which for 2 years it was integrated into an economic union with Dahomey before it was assimilated into French West Africa in 1936.

A decade later, the British and French sphere of Togoland were placed under the United Nations trusteeship. The year after, the Ewe people dispatched representatives to the Trusteeship Council, demanding a common administration for the whole of Togoland, in an effort to work towards self-administration. This was a complex challenge given the fact that the Ewe people also resided in the southeastern parts of the Gold Coast Colony but were not a majority in the southern region of Togoland. Eventually, a plebiscite was held on 9 May 1956 and on 13 December of the same year, the British sphere of Togoland was fused into the Gold Coast. In the next year, on 6 March 1957 the territories were renamed Ghana and the newly made nation became an independent country.

The French sphere of Togoland remained within the French Union but became a self-governing republic on 30 August, 1956. The first election based on self-administration took place in April 1958 whereby Nicolas Grunitzky of the Togolese Progress Party, who was appointed as premier under the October 1956 plebiscite confirming the status of self-governance, was rejected in favour of the Togolese National Unity Party leader, Sylvanus Olympio. Following his victory, Togo became an independent nation on 27 April, 1960. When the presidential government format was officially established following the elections of 1961, Olympio was instated as the first president of Togo. Under his leadership, Togo maintained a strong economic partnership with France and joined the African Union (then known as the Organisation of African Unity) and the Joint African and Malagasy Organisation in 1963 and 1965, respectively.

Key Dates

1400-1600s Ewe clans from Nigeria and the Ane from Ghana and Ivory Coast settle in the region

1700s Coastal area occupied by Danish forces

1884 German protectorate of Togoland established

1914 British and French take over Togoland; Germany surrenders.

1922 League of Nations mandates given to Britain to administer the western part and to France to administer the eastern areas of Togoland territory

1956 British-ruled western territory incorporated into the Gold Coast, later renamed Ghana which becomes an independent nation

1960 Independence gained on 27 April

1961 Sylvanus Olympio elected as first president

1974 The phosphate industry nationalised

1992 New constitution approved

Recent years Continued political stability with regular elections; major infrastructure investments including expansion of the Port of Lomé and development of the Adétikopé Industrial Platform (PIA)

Legal System and Government

Togo is a presidential republic with the president acting as the Chief of State and the Prime Minister as the head of government with the latter appointed by the former. For Togo’s Executive branch, the President is also elected on the basis of a simple majority vote without term limits, however, the term lasts for 5 years rather than 7, and the President is the one directly appointing the Cabinet of Ministers on the advice of the Prime Minister. Togo’s Legislative branch, in comparison, includes a unicameral legislature which is the National Assembly. It comprises 91 seats for a term of 5 years as well though in Togo’s case members are directly elected in multi-seat constituencies via closed voting and representation is proportional to the size of the political parties’ list.

The Togolese legal system is based on a customary law system and the judicial system comprises of the Supreme Court, two Courts of Appeal and Tribunals of First Instance. Local legal disputes and cases are handled by the village chiefs and councils of elders though the cases are usually limited to minor criminal or civil cases.

Economy

Togo remains classified as a Least Developed Country but has recorded sustained economic growth in recent years, with real GDP expanding at around 5–6% annually. The country benefits from its strategic location, the deep-water Port of Lomé (the only major deep-water port in the sub-region), and significant phosphate reserves. The mining sector, though still relatively small in GDP terms, has seen strong recovery and expansion, particularly in phosphate extraction and processing. Agriculture continues to employ the majority of the workforce (around 60–65%) and contributes roughly 18–20% of GDP, with key products including cotton, cocoa, coffee, yams, cassava and maize. The manufacturing sector, contributing around 14% of GDP, focuses on agro-processing, textiles, cement, plastics and consumer goods.

The services sector, including transport, logistics and trade linked to the port, accounts for nearly half of GDP and has been a major driver of recent growth. Post-pandemic recovery has been solid, supported by increased public investment, improved port efficiency and the operationalisation of the Adétikopé Industrial Platform (PIA). Inflation has remained relatively contained, and the economy continues to benefit from the stable West African CFA franc. Challenges remain in infrastructure, energy access and skills development, but ongoing reforms and regional integration efforts are supporting a more diversified and resilient growth path.

Trade

In recent years Togo’s GDP has grown to approximately US$13.4 billion (2026 est.). Main exports continue to include phosphates and fertilisers, cotton, salt, sulphur, lime, cement, plastics and vehicles/rolling stock, with significant re-export activity through the Port of Lomé. Key export destinations include neighbouring countries such as Burkina Faso, Mali, Benin and Ghana, as well as European and Asian markets. Imports are led by vehicles, mineral fuels, machinery, mechanical appliances and plastics, sourced primarily from China, France, India and other partners.

Togo is a member of the African Union, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone, Organisation internationale de la Francophonie and is a signatory of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU).

Investment Opportunities

With the Port of Lomé as West Africa’s premier deep-water port, abundant natural resources (including phosphates), stable currency (CFA Franc), improving infrastructure and a young, growing workforce, Togo continues to position itself as a dynamic regional logistics and industrial hub. The government has prioritised infrastructure development, industrialisation and value addition through the successor frameworks to the earlier National Development Plan, with strong emphasis on the Port of Lomé expansion, road and energy projects, and the operational Adétikopé Industrial Platform (PIA).

Priority sectors for foreign investment include agro-processing and agritech, sustainable mining and phosphate value addition, renewable energy, tourism (particularly quality hospitality and eco-tourism), health services and logistics. The PIA Special Economic Zone offers a single-window facilitation system and attractive incentives, including full exemption from customs duties and taxes on imported equipment and materials, VAT exemptions on services, a reduced 2% payroll tax for the lifetime of qualifying companies, and exemptions on capital taxes. Additional support measures are available for investors in priority sectors, with ongoing efforts to improve the business environment, digitalise procedures and strengthen public-private partnerships.