The African Development Bank (AfDB) is providing financial support to Togo in the implementation of the Emergency Support Program for the Response to COVID-19 (PAR-COVID-19) and the Youth Agricultural Investment Support Project (PAIAJ). This support, which amounts to 16.5 billion CFA francs, was granted by the deu parties, on Thursday, August 6, to the cabinet of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, during a signing ceremony of the loan agreement of the African Development Fund (ADF), on the one hand, and the donation memorandum of understanding, on the other. The documents supporting the implementation of the Government's Comprehensive Response Plan to the health crisis were initialled by Minister Sani Yaya of Economy and Finance and Mr. Georges Bohoussou, Acting Country Manager of the AfDB Group.

A signing ceremony of the agreements took place on August 6, 2020, in Lomé, between Togo, represented by the Minister of Economy and Finance, Mr. Sani Yaya, and the African Development Bank (AfDB) represented by its Acting Country Manager, Mr. Georges Bohoussou. These agreements relate to a grant and a loan from the African Development Fund (ADF) and the Transition Support Facility (TF), relating to the support of the Emergency Covid-19 Response Support Program (PAR-COVID-19). In this respect, the AfDB grants a financial envelope totalling twenty million (20,000,000) Units of Account, or about 16.5 billion CFA francs. According to Minister Yaya, this support is composed, on the one hand, of a loan from the African Development Fund (ADF) for an amount of 4.9 billion CFA francs and a grant from the ADF for 4.1 billion CFA francs, on the other hand, a loan from the Transition Support Facility (FAT) for 7.5 billion CFA francs. "This funding, in the form of emergency budget support, is intended to support the implementation of the Government's Comprehensive Response Plan to the Covid-19 health crisis. The 'loans' components are concessional loans from the AfDB Group and the Bank's financing facility for fragile and transition countries and are therefore in line with the government's debt policy," the Minister said.

Indeed, the measures taken by the government to curb the spread of COVID-19 have had a negative impact on economic activity and growth, estimated in 2020 at 1.3% against an initial forecast of 5.5%. The State is therefore facing a significant and unexpected loss of tax revenues, but also must commit significant resources to finance unforeseen expenses such as: the acquisition of health equipment for the care of people infected by Covid-19, the implementation of actions to support the purchasing power of households, in particular, the most vulnerable groups through cash transfers, the establishment of mobile laboratories, the support of social segments of water and electricity consumption, as well as the granting of credits to agricultural producers; etc.... said the Minister. It also referred to support for the private sector, in particular SMEs/SMIs, through tax relief measures, as well as the postponement of tax deadlines for all companies that would make the need for it.

In this regard, the AfDB Group's COVID-19 Rripost Support Program (PAR-COVID-19) "contributes to strengthening Togo's health and socio-economic resilience to the coronavirus pandemic. In particular, it will support the health response measures taken by the Government and efforts to mitigate the socio-economic effects of the pandemic," the Minister stressed. This support will strengthen the country's response capacity against Covid-19 and should help make it more resilient to public health emergencies, but above all to fill its budgetary resource gap in order to meet basic societal needs and support for the productive sector, he replied, before indicating that this programme has four components, namely: support for the national health response strategy to COVID-19 and support for the national strategy to mitigate its socio-economic effects.

Support for agricultural investment by young people welcomed

In the opinion of Minister Yaya, "The development of the agricultural sector is also a priority of the Togolese government, ...c is today the main one and it is in this capacity that we also thank the Transition Support Facility (FAT) through the African Development Bank (AfDB) for the donation of one million UA, or about 782 million CFA francs, intended for the implementation of the Youth Agricultural Investment Support Project (PAIAJ). The project, which will be spread over 2 years, will contribute to strengthening the capacities of disadvantaged young people, with a view to their inclusion in the economic and social fabric of our country." This project will facilitate the integration of about 620 disadvantaged young women and men, a third of whom are women in the links in agricultural value chains. It will provide access to finance for 530 businesses for disadvantaged young people. The Minister recalled that the AfDB's support in Togo for several years also focuses on strengthening the institutional framework and economic development through the financing of the NDP's structuring projects. He expressed the government's gratitude to the bank for its constant concern.

In his speech, Mr. Georges Bohoussou, reiterated the AfDB's commitment to support Togo in its efforts to recover from the economy. According to him, to date, the AfDB's portfolio is valued at about 300 billion CFA francs.