Togo

Republic of TogoRepublique Togolaise

republic under transition to multiparty democratic rule

Togo as the 1995 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 80 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalLome
Area56,790 sq km
LocationWestern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between
Populationas each edition published it
4.41 million July 1995 est. · 3.67m in 1990
Population growth% a year
3.58% 1995 est. · 3.61% in 1993
Median ageyears
Not in this edition 17.3 yrs in 2003
Life expectancyyears at birth
57.42 years 1995 est. · 56.46 yrs in 1993
Fertility ratechildren per woman
6.83 children per woman 1995 est. · 7.2 in 1990
Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births
86.5 deaths per 1,000 live births 1995 est. · 112 in 1990
GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars
$800 1993 est. · $400 in 1993
GDP real growth% a year
Not in this edition 0% in 1993

Geography

Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between | Benin and Ghana

13 fields

Land useshare of 56,790 sq km

arable land 25%permanent crops 1%meadows and pastures 4%forest and woodland 28%other 42%irrigated 70 sq km (1989 est.)
Area
56,790sq km
land area: 54,390 sq kmcomparative area: slightly smaller than West Virginia
Coastline
56km
exclusive economic zone: 200 nmterritorial sea: 30 nm
Land boundaries
1,647km
total · Benin 644 km, Burkina 126 km, Ghana 877 km

Location

Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Benin and Ghana

Climate

  • tropical;
  • hot, humid in south;
  • semiarid in north

Terrain

  • gently rolling savanna in north;
  • central hills;
  • southern plateau;
  • low coastal plain with extensive lagoons and marshes

Natural resources

phosphates, limestone, marble

Environment

current issues:
deforestation attributable to slash-and-burn agriculture and the use of wood for fuel; recent droughts affecting agriculture
natural hazards:
hot, dry harmattan wind can reduce visibility in north during winter; periodic droughts
international agreements:
  • party to - Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83;
  • signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Tropical Timber 94

People

15 fields
Population
4,410,370
(July 1995 est.)growth rate: 3.58% (1995 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1995 est.)

Birth
46.78Death
11.01Net migration
0

Male · female(1995 est.)

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years57.42
55.29 · 59.6
TotalMale · femaleLiteracy43%
56% · 31%
MaleFemaleLiteracy age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Religions

indigenous beliefs 70%Christian 20%Muslim 10%

Age structure

0-14 years:
49% (female 1,069,171; male 1,079,999)
15-64 years:
49% (female 1,121,685; male 1,043,000)
65 years and over:
2% (female 51,392; male 45,123) (July 1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate

86.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate

6.83 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality

noun:
Togolese (singular and plural)
adjective:
Togolese

Ethnic divisions

37 tribes; largest and most important are Ewe, Mina, and Kabye, European and Syrian-Lebanese under 1%

Languages

French (official and the language of commerce), Ewe and Mina (the two major African languages in the south), Dagomba and Kabye (the two major African languages in the north)

Labor force

NA; by occupation: agriculture 80% note: about 88,600 wage earners, evenly divided between public and private sectors

Government

Republic under transition to multiparty democratic rule; President Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA (since 14 April 1967); Prime Minister Edem KODJO (since April 1994)

21 fields

Legislature, 81 seatsone dot, one seat

CAR 36RPT 35UTD 7UJD 2CFN 1

Names

conventional long form:
Republic of Togo
conventional short form:
Togo
local long form:
Republique Togolaise
local short form:
none
former:
French Togo

Type

republic under transition to multiparty democratic rule

Administrative divisions

  • 23 circumscriptions (circonscriptions, singular - circonscription);
  • Amlame (Amou), Aneho (Lacs), Atakpame (Ogou), Badou (Wawa), Bafilo (Assoli), Bassar (Bassari), Dapango (Tone), Kande (Keran), Klouto (Kloto), Pagouda (Binah), Lama-Kara (Kozah), Lome (Golfe), Mango (Oti), Niamtougou (Doufelgou), Notse (Haho), Pagouda, Sotouboua, Tabligbo (Yoto), Tchamba, Nyala, Tchaoudjo, Tsevie (Zio), Vogan (Vo)

note: the 23 units may now be called prefectures (singular - prefecture) and reported name changes for individual units are included in parentheses

Independence

27 April 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship)

National holiday

Independence Day, 27 April (1960)

Constitution

multiparty draft constitution approved by High Council of the Republic 1 July 1992; adopted by public referendum 27 September 1992

Suffrage

NA years of age; universal adult

Executive branch

chief of state:
President Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA (since 14 April 1967); election last held 25 August 1993 (next election to be held NA 1998); all major opposition parties boycotted the election; Gen. EYADEMA won 96.5% of the vote
head of government:
Prime Minister Edem KODJO (since April 1994)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; appointed by the president and the prime minister

National Assembly

  • elections last held 6 and 20 February 1994 (next to be held NA);
  • results - percent of vote by party NA;
  • seats - (81 total) CAR 36, RPT 35, UTD 7, UJD 2, CFN 1

note: the Supreme Court ordered new elections for 3 seats of the Action Committee for Renewal (CAR) and the Togolese Union for Democracy (UTD), lowering their total to 34 and 6 seats,

respectively; the remaining 3 seats have not been filled

Judicial branch

Court of Appeal (Cour d'Appel), Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)

Political parties and leaders

Rally of the Togolese People (RPT), President Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA; Coordination des Forces Nouvelles (CFN), Joseph KOFFIGOH; The Togolese Union for Democracy (UTD), Edem KODJO; The Action Committee for Renewal (CAR), Yao AGBOYIBOR; The Union for Democracy and Solidarity (UDS), Antoine FOLLY; The Pan-African Sociodemocrats Group (GSP), an alliance of three radical

parties:
  • The Democratic Convention of African Peoples (CDPA), Leopold GNININVI;
  • The Party for Democracy and Renewal (PDR), Zarifou AYEVA;
  • The Pan-African Social Party (PSP), Francis AGBAGLI;
  • The Union of Forces for Change (UFC), Gilchrist OLYMPIO (in exile);
  • Union of Justice and Democracy (UJD), Lal TAXPANDJAN

note: Rally of the Togolese People (RPT) led by President EYADEMA was the only party until the formation of multiple parties was legalized 12 April 1991

Member of

ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEAO (observer), ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, MINURSO, NAM, OAU, UN, UNAMIR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission:
Charge d'Affaires Edem Frederic HEGBE
chancery:
2208 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
[1] (202) 234-4212

FAX

[1] (202) 232-3190

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission:
Ambassador Johnny YOUNG (since September 1994)
embassy:
Rue Pelletier Caventou and Rue Vauban, Lome
mailing address:
B. P. 852, Lome
telephone:
[228] 21 77 17, 21 29 91 through 21 29 94

FAX

[228] 21 79 52

Flag

  • five equal horizontal bands of green (top and bottom) alternating with yellow;
  • there is a white five-pointed star on a red square in the upper hoist-side corner;
  • uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia

Economy

The economy is heavily dependent on subsistence agriculture, | which accounts for about half of GDP and provides employment for 80% | of the labor force.

19 fields
GDP per capita, PPP
$800
(1993 est.)
External debt
$1.3billion
(1991)

Budget

Revenues
$284 millionExpenditures
$407 million (1991 est.)
expenditures including capital expenditures of $NA

Installed generating capacity, 30,000 kW

Electricity production
60 millionElectricity consumption per capita
83 (1993)

Overview

The economy is heavily dependent on subsistence agriculture, which accounts for about half of GDP and provides employment for 80% of the labor force. Primary agricultural exports are cocoa, coffee, and cotton, which together generate about 30% of total export earnings. Togo is self-sufficient in basic foodstuffs when harvests are normal.

In the industrial sector phosphate mining is by far the most important activity, although it has suffered from the collapse of world phosphate prices and increased foreign competition. Togo serves as a regional commercial and trade center. The government's decade-long IMF and World Bank supported effort to implement economic reform measures to encourage foreign investment and bring revenues in line with expenditures has stalled.

Political unrest, including private and public sector strikes throughout 1992 and 1993, has jeopardized the reform program, shrunk the tax base, and disrupted vital economic activity. Although strikes had ended in 1994, political unrest and lack of funds prevented the government from taking advantage of the 50% currency devaluation of January 1994.

Resumption of World Bank and IMF flows will depend on implementation of several controversial moves toward privatization and on downsizing the military, on which the regime depends to stay in power.

National product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $3.3 billion (1993 est.)

Exports

$221 million (f.o.b., 1993)

commodities:
phosphates, cotton, cocoa, coffee
partners:
EC 40%, Africa 16%, US 1% (1990)

Imports

$292 million (c.i.f., 1993)

commodities:
machinery and equipment, consumer goods, food, chemical products
partners:
EC 57%, Africa 17%, US 5%, Japan 4% (1990)

Industries

phosphate mining, agricultural processing, cement, handicrafts, textiles, beverages

Agriculture

  • accounts for 49% of GDP;
  • cash crops - coffee, cocoa, cotton;
  • food crops - yams, cassava, corn, beans, rice, millet, sorghum;
  • livestock production not significant;
  • annual fish catch of 10,000-14,000 tons

Illicit drugs

increasingly used as transit hub by heroin traffickers

Economic aid

recipient:
  • US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-90), $142 million;
  • Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-90), $2 billion;
  • OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $35 million;
  • Communist countries (1970-89), $51 million

Currency

1 CFA franc (CFAF) = 100 centimes

Exchange rates

Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (CFAF) per US$1 - 529.43 (January 1995), 555.20 (1994), 283.16 (1993), 264.69 (1992), 282.11 (1991), 272.26 (1990) note: the official rate is pegged to the French franc, and beginning 12 January 1994, the CFA franc was devalued to CFAF 100 per French franc from CFAF 50 at which it had been fixed since 1948

Fiscal year

calendar year

Transportation

6 fields

Airports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right · 9 in all

2
2,438 to 3,047 m
2
under 914 m
914 to 1,523 m
5
PavedUnpaved

Networkskm

Highways
6,462Railroads
532Inland waterways
50
Highways: paved: 1,762 km · unpaved: unimproved earth 4,700 km · Railroads: narrow gauge: 532 km 1.000-m gauge

Railroads

total:
532 km
narrow gauge:
532 km 1.000-m gauge

Highways

total:
6,462 km
paved:
1,762 km
unpaved:
unimproved earth 4,700 km

Ports

Kpeme, Lome

Communications

3 fields

Telephone system

NA telephones; fair system based on network of radio relay routes supplemented by open wire lines

local:
NA
intercity:
microwave radio relay and open wire lines
international:
1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 SYMPHONIE earth station

Radio

broadcast stations:
AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0
radios:
NA

Television

broadcast stations:
3 (relays 2)
televisions:
NA

Defense Forces

Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie

3 fields

Branches

Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie

Manpower availability

males age 15-49 936,270; males fit for military service 491,578 (1995 est.)

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $48 million, 2.9% of GDP (1993) TOKELAU (territory of New Zealand)

Cite this entry

Central Intelligence Agency. “Togo.” The World Factbook 1995. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/togo/1995.