Togo has taken a major step towards modernizing and facilitating trade with the official launch of the Togo Trade Portal on 25-27 March 2025 in Lomé. This strategic initiative aims to enhance trade procedure transparency and improve access to regional and international markets, particularly for Togolese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
A digital portal for greater transparency and stronger competitive trade
The Togo Trade Portal, in full compliance with Article 1.2 of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Trade Facilitation, is the result of a partnership between the Ministry of Trade, Crafts and Local Consumption (MCACL) and the International Trade Centre (ITC), whose aim is to enhance the transparency and predictability of export and import procedures in Togo. It is being implemented as part of ITC's Facilitating Improved Access to International Markets (AMI Commerce Togo) project, funded by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) as part of the PROCOMP project.
The Togo Trade Portal is an intuitive online platform offering detailed mapping of import and export procedures. This innovative tool will provide economic operators access to reliable, up-to-date information on the required documents, and on applicable fees and contact details of pertinent administrations. By simplifying administrative formalities, this platform will play a key role in improving the business climate, reducing barriers to trade and strengthening the competitiveness of Togolese companies on international markets.
Objectives and benefits of the Togo Trade Portal
The portal aims to achieve the following improvements:
- Facilitate trade by reducing red tape;
- Strengthen competitiveness of Togolese companies by providing them with direct access to strategic information;
- Create a more transparent and predictable business environment, conducive to private sector investment and development; and
- Support the integration of SMEs into regional and international value chains.
Since January 2024, ITC has been supporting MCACL in setting up the Togo Trade Portal. More than 50 trade procedures have already been listed, and a dozen certifications have been integrated in the platform.
To date, the portal covers 13 strategic product groups for the Togolese economy, including 7 export products (pineapple, palm oil, corn and derivatives, cassava and derivatives, soybeans, cashew nuts, shea kernels) and 6 import products (medicines, fertilizers, rice, ICT terminals, textiles, fish). This directory will be continually enriched to include more commodities.
A unifying event for Togolese trade
The launch ceremony was attended by representatives of public and private institutions, members of the Trade Facilitation Technical Committee, and all stakeholders involved in cross-border trade in Togo.
Through the Togo Trade Portal, Togo asserts its determination to accelerate its economic transformation and to foster more fluid, efficient and competitive trade, in line with regional trade facilitation commitments.
