Togo Takes on Contraband and Counterfeit Products with New Technical Committee

Economic governance

Tuesday, 16 April 2024 12:10

Togo Takes on Contraband and Counterfeit Products with New Technical Committee

(Togo First) - A technical committee was launched in Togo on April 12, 2024, to monitor product marking. The fruit of a contract between the Togolese government and SICPA.SA, the new committee aims to ensure the quality of imported consumer products like water, tobacco, and alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.

The committee comprises experts from the Togolese Revenue Office, the tax authority, and the Ministry of Trade. Its mission is to combat false declarations, and unfair competition, and encourage economic actors to adhere to established standards.

Since July 2023, Togo has established a commission to oversee the contract with SICPA SA. The technical committee supports this commission in implementing legal provisions and monitoring the reform.

"The technical committee is the crutch of the commission. It will ensure that the commission can fully play its role," emphasized Essowavana Adoyi, former tax commissioner at the OTR and president of the Commission, as quoted by Togo Presse. "Behind this reform, one must consider the population's good health, as the government ensures that citizens consume good quality food," he added.

In Togo, eliminating contraband, counterfeit, falsified, and expired products remains challenging for regulatory authorities, particularly in the food consumption sector. According to a study from 2021, 80% of beer and 40% of tobacco products imported and marketed in Togo escaped the tax administration's scrutiny.

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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.