Background: From the 11th to the 16th centuries, various ethnic groups settled the Togo region. From the 16th to the 18th centuries, the coastal region became a major slave trading center and the surrounding region took on the name of 'The Slave Coast.' In 1884, Germany declared a region including present-day Togo as a protectorate called Togoland. After World War I, rule over Togo was transferred to France. French Togoland became Togo upon independence in 1960. Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA, installed as military ruler in 1967, ruled Togo with a heavy hand for almost four decades. Despite the facade of multi-party elections instituted in the early 1990s, the government was largely dominated by President EYADEMA, whose Rally of the Togolese People (RPT) party has been in power almost continually since 1967 and its successor, the Union for the Republic, maintains a majority of seats in today's legislature. Upon EYADEMA's death in February 2005, the military installed the president's son, Faure GNASSINGBE, and then engineered his formal election two months later. Democratic gains since then allowed Togo to hold its first relatively free and fair legislative elections in October 2007. Since 2007, President GNASSINGBE has started the country along a gradual path to democratic reform. Togo has since held multiple presidential and legislative elections deemed generally free and fair by international observers. Despite those positive moves, political reconciliation has moved slowly, and the country experiences periodic outbursts of violent protest by frustrated citizens. Recent constitutional changes to institute a runoff system in presidential elections and establish term limits has done little to reduce the resentment many Togolese feel after over 50 years of one-family rule.

Geographic coordinates: 8 00 N, 1 10 E

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 56,785 km²
Land: 54,385 km²
Water: 2,400 km²
Rank: 126
Comparative: slightly smaller than West Virginia

Land boundaries
Total: 1880 km
Border countries: (3) Benin 651 km; , Burkina Faso 131 km; , Ghana 1098 km

Coastline: 56 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 30 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

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

Elevation
Mean elevation: 236 m
Lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Highest point: Mont Agou 986 m

Natural resources: phosphates, limestone, marble, arable land

Land use
Agricultural land: 67.4% (2011 est.)
Forest: 4.9% (2011 est.)
Other: 27.7% (2011 est.)

Irrigated land: 70 km² (2012)

Natural hazards: hot, dry harmattan wind can reduce visibility in north during winter; periodic droughts

Geography
Note: the country's length allows it to stretch through six distinct geographic regions; climate varies from tropical to savanna

Population
Distribution rank: population distribution map: 8,608,444 (July 2020 est.)
Note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected
Rank: 99
Growth rate: 2.56% (2020 est.)
Growth rate rank: 21
Below poverty line: 55.1% (2015 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Togolese (singular and plural)
Adjective: Togolese

Ethnic groups:

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

Religions: Christian 43.7%, folk 35.6%, Muslim 14%, Hindu <.1%, Buddhist <.1%, Jewish <.1%, other .5%, none 6.2% (2010 est.)

Demographic profile: Togo’s population is estimated to have grown to four times its size between 1960 and 2010. With nearly 60% of its populace under the age of 25 and a high annual growth rate attributed largely to high fertility, Togo’s population is likely to continue to expand for the foreseeable future. Reducing fertility, boosting job creation, and improving education will be essential to reducing the country’s high poverty rate. In 2008, Togo eliminated primary school enrollment fees, leading to higher enrollment but increased pressure on limited classroom space, teachers, and materials. Togo has a good chance of achieving universal primary education, but educational quality, the underrepresentation of girls, and the low rate of enrollment in secondary and tertiary schools remain concerns.Togo is both a country of emigration and asylum. In the early 1990s, southern Togo suffered from the economic decline of the phosphate sector and ethnic and political repression at the hands of dictator Gnassingbe EYADEMA and his northern, Kabye-dominated administration. The turmoil led 300,000 to 350,000 predominantly southern Togolese to flee to Benin and Ghana, with most not returning home until relative stability was restored in 1997. In 2005, another outflow of 40,000 Togolese to Benin and Ghana occurred when violence broke out between the opposition and security forces over the disputed election of EYADEMA’s son Faure GNASSINGBE to the presidency. About half of the refugees reluctantly returned home in 2006, many still fearing for their safety. Despite ethnic tensions and periods of political unrest, Togo in September 2017 was home to more than 9,600 refugees from Ghana.

Age structure
0-14 years: 39.73% (male 1,716,667/female 1,703,230)
15-24 years: 19.03% (male 817,093/female 820,971)
25-54 years: 33.26% (male 1,423,554/female 1,439,380)
55-64 years: 4.42% (male 179,779/female 200,392)
65 years and over: 3.57% (male 132,304/female 175,074) (2020 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 77.1
Youth dependency ratio: 72
Elderly dependency ratio: 5.1
Potential support ratio: 19.4 (2020 est.)

Median age
Total: 20 years
Male: 19.7 years
Female: 20.3 years (2020 est.)
Rank: 196

Population growth rate: 2.56% (2020 est.)
Rank: 21

Birth rate: 32 births/1000 population (2020 est.)
Rank: 28

Death rate: 6.5 deaths/1000 population (2020 est.)
Rank: 144

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1000 population (2020 est.)
Rank: 96

Population distribution
Rank: population distribution map

Urbanization
Urban population: 42.8% of total population
Note: (2015-20 est.)
Rate of urbanization: 3.76% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: 1.828 million LOME (capital) (2020)

Environment
Current issues: deforestation attributable to slash-and-burn agriculture and the use of wood for fuel; very little rain forest still present and what remains is highly degraded; desertification; water pollution presents health hazards and hinders the fishing industry; air pollution increasing in urban areas
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth: 21 years (2013/14 est.)
Note: median age at first birth among women 25-29

Infant mortality rate
Total: 38.5 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 44.5 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 32.3 deaths/1000 live births (2020 est.)
Rank: 40

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 66.6 years
Male: 63.9 years
Female: 69.3 years (2020 est.)
Rank: 185

Total fertility rate: 4.22 children born/woman (2020 est.)
Rank: 26

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 23.9% (2017)

Drinking water source
Urban: 7.7% of population
Rural: 44% of population
Total: 29.1% of population (2017 est.)

Current health expenditure: 6.2% (2017)

Physicians density: 0.03 physicians/1000 population (2017)

Hospital bed density: 0.7 beds/1000 population (2011)

Sanitation facility access
Urban: 19.6% of population
Rural: 83.8% of population
Total: 57.4% of population (2017 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 2.3% (2019 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 22
People living with hivaids: 120,000 (2019 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 41
Deaths: 3,000 (2019 est.)
Deaths rank: 36

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: very high (2020)
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Vectorborne diseases: malaria, dengue fever, and yellow fever
Water contact diseases: schistosomiasis
Animal contact diseases: rabies
Respiratory diseases: meningococcal meningitis

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 8.4% (2016)
Rank: 152

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 15.2% (2017)
Rank: 39

Education expenditures: 5.4% of GDP (2018)
Rank: 41

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 63.7%
Male: 77.3%
Female: 51.2% (2015)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 13 years
Male: 14 years
Note: NA (2017)
Female: 12 years

Country name
Conventional long form: Togolese Republic
Conventional short form: Togo
Local long form: Republique Togolaise
Local short form: none
Former: French Togoland
Etymology: derived from the Ewe words to (river) and godo (on the other side) to give the sense of on the other side of the river; originally, this designation applied to the town of Togodo (now Togoville) on the northern shore of Lake Togo, but the name was eventually extended to the entire nation

Government type: presidential republic

Capital
Name: Lome
Geographic coordinates: 6 07 N, 1 13 E
Time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time): etymology: Lome comes from 'alotime' which in the native Ewe language means 'among the alo plants'; alo trees dominated the city's original founding site

Administrative divisions: 5 regions (regions, singular - region); Centrale, Kara, Maritime, Plateaux, Savanes

Independence: 27 April 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship)

National holiday: Independence Day, 27 April (1960)

Constitution
History: several previous; latest adopted 27 September 1992, effective 14 October 1992
Amendments: proposed by the president of the republic or supported by at least one fifth of the National Assembly membership; passage requires four-fifths majority vote by the Assembly; a referendum is required if approved by only two-thirds majority of the Assembly or if requested by the president; constitutional articles on the republican and secular form of government cannot be amended; amended 2002, 2007, 2019 when the National Assembly unanimously approved a package of amendments, including setting presidential term limits of two 5-year mandates

Legal system: customary law system

International law organization participation: accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; non-party state to the ICCt

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Togo
Dual citizenship recognized: yes
Residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Faure GNASSINGBE (since 4 May 2005) 
Head of government: Prime Minister Victoire Tomegah DOGBE (since 28 September 2020)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister
Electionsappointments: president directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 22 February 2020 (next to be held February 2025); prime minister appointed by the president
Election results: Faure GNASSINGBE reelected president; percent of vote - Faure GNASSINGBE (UNIR) 72.4%, Agbeyome KODJO (MPDD) 18.4%, Jean-Pierre FABRE (ANC) 4.4%, other 5%

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (91 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by closed, party-list proportional representation vote to serve 5-year terms)
Elections: last held on 20 December 2018 (next to be held in 2023)
Election results: percent of vote by coalition/party - NA; seats by party - UNIR 59, UFC 6, NET 3, MPDD 3, other 2, independent 18; composition - men 75, women 16, percent of women 17.6%

Judicial branch
Highest courts: Supreme Court or Cour Supreme (organized into criminal and administrative chambers, each with a chamber president and advisors); Constitutional Court (consists of 9 judges, including the court president)
Judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court president appointed by decree of the president of the republic upon the proposal of the Supreme Council of the Magistracy, a 9-member judicial, advisory, and disciplinary body; other judicial appointments and judge tenure NA; Constitutional Court judges appointed by the National Assembly; judge tenure NA
Subordinate courts: Court of Assizes (sessions court); Appeal Court; tribunals of first instance (divided into civil, commercial, and correctional chambers; Court of State Security; military tribunal

Political parties and leaders: Action Committee for Renewal or CAR [Yaovi AGBOYIBO]Alliance of Democrats for Integral Development or ADDI [Tchaboure GOGUE]Democratic Convention of African Peoples or CDPA [Brigitte ADJAMAGBO-JOHNSON]Democratic Forces for the Republic or FDR [Dodji APEVON]National Alliance for Change or ANC [Jean-Pierre FABRE]New Togolese Commitment [Gerry TAAMA]Pan-African National Party or PNP [Tikpi ATCHADAM]Pan-African Patriotic Convergence or CPP [Edem KODJO]Patriotic Movement for Democracy and Development or MPDD [Agbeyome KODJO] Socialist Pact for Renewal or PSR [Abi TCHESSA]The Togolese Party [Nathaniel OLYMPIO]Union of Forces for Change or UFC [Gilchrist OLYMPIO]Union for the Republic or UNIR [Faure GNASSINGBE]

International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, EITI (compliant country), Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSMA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Frederic Edem HEGBE (since 24 April 2017)
In the us chancery: 2,208 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 234-4,212
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 232-3,190
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Eric W. STROHMAYER (since 11 April 2019)
From the us telephone: [228] 2,261-5,470
From the us embassy: 4,332 Blvd. Eyadema, Lome
From the us mailing address: B.P. 852, Lome; 2,300 Lome Place, Washington, DC 20,521-2,300
From the us FAX: [228] 2,261-5,501

Flag description: five equal horizontal bands of green (top and bottom) alternating with yellow; a white five-pointed star on a red square is in the upper hoist-side corner; the five horizontal stripes stand for the five different regions of the country; the red square is meant to express the loyalty and patriotism of the people, green symbolizes hope, fertility, and agriculture, while yellow represents mineral wealth and faith that hard work and strength will bring prosperity; the star symbolizes life, purity, peace, dignity, and Togo's independence
Note: uses the popular Pan-African colors of Ethiopia

National symbols: lion; national colors: green, yellow, red, white

National anthem
Name: Salut a toi, pays de nos aieux (Hail to Thee, Land of Our Forefathers)
Lyricsmusic: Alex CASIMIR-DOSSEH
Note: adopted 1960, restored 1992; this anthem was replaced by another during one-party rule between 1979 and 1992

Real gdp purchasing power parity
Real:
Real note: data are in 2017 dollars

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 63

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2017 dollars
Rank: 218

Gross national saving:
Rank: 129

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 84.5% (2017 est.)
Government consumption: 11.4% (2017 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 23.4% (2017 est.)
Investment in inventories: -1.4% (2017 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 43.1% (2017 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -61% (2017 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 28.8% (2017 est.)
Industry: 21.8% (2017 est.)
Services: 49.8% (2017 est.)

Agriculture products: coffee, cocoa, cotton, yams, cassava (manioc, tapioca), corn, beans, rice, millet, sorghum; livestock; fish

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

Industrial production growth rate: 5% (2017 est.)
Rank: 58

Labor force: 2.595 million (2007 est.)
Rank: 112
By occupation agriculture: 65%
By occupation industry: 5%
By occupation services: 30% (1998 est.)

Unemployment rate: 6.9% (2016 est.)
Rank: 111

Population below poverty line: 55.1% (2015 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 3.3%
Highest 10: 27.1% (2006)

Budget
Revenues: 1.023 billion (2017 est.)
Expenditures: 1.203 billion (2017 est.)
Surplus or deficit: -3.8% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 154

Taxes and other revenues: 21.5% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Rank: 137

Public debt:
Rank: 40

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Rank: 50

Current account balance:
Rank: 114

Exports:
Rank: 146
Partners: Benin 16.7%, Burkina Faso 15.2%, Niger 8.9%, India 7.3%, Mali 6.7%, Ghana 5.5%, Cote dIvoire 5.4%, Nigeria 4.1% (2017)
Commodities: reexports, cotton, phosphates, coffee, cocoa

Imports:
Rank: 156
Commodities: machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products
Partners: China 27.5%, France 9.1%, Netherlands 4.4%, Japan 4.3% (2017)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Rank: 182

Debt external:
Rank: 160

Exchange rates:

Electricity
Access population without electricity: 5 million (2019)
Access electrification total population: 43% (2019)
Access electrification urban areas: 77% (2019)
Access electrification rural areas: 19% (2019)
Production: 232.6 million kWh (2016 est.)
Production rank: 189
Consumption: 1.261 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Consumption rank: 151
Exports: 0 kWh (2016 est.)
Exports rank: 208
Imports: 1.14 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Imports rank: 67
Installed generating capacity: 230,000 kW (2016 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 164
Generation sources fossil fuels: 70% of total installed capacity (2016 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 109
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 195
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 29% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 71
Generation sources other renewable sources: 1% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 169

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 207
Crude oil exports: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 206
Crude oil imports: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 204
Crude oil proven reserves: 0 bbl (1 January 2018 est.)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 204

Refined petroleum
Products production: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products production rank: 208
Products consumption: 15,000 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Products consumption rank: 152
Products exports: 0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products exports rank: 209
Products imports: 13,100 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products imports rank: 142

Natural gas
Production: 0 m³ (2017 est.)
Production rank: 206
Consumption: 0 m³ (2017 est.)
Consumption rank: 206
Exports: 0 m³ (2017 est.)
Exports rank: 200
Imports: 0 m³ (2017 est.)
Imports rank: 200
Proven reserves: 0 m³ (1 January 2014 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 200

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 2.651 million Mt (2017 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 151

Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 45,311 (2019 est.)
Fixed lines rank: 159
Mobile cellular total subscriptions: 6,477,816
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 77.2 (2019 est.)
Mobile cellular rank: 109

Broadcast media: 1 state-owned TV station with multiple transmission sites; five private TV stations broadcast locally; cable TV service is available; state-owned radio network with two stations (in Lome and Kara); several dozen private radio stations and a few community radio stations; transmissions of multiple international broadcasters available (2019)

Internet
Country code: .tg
Users total: 1,010,609
Users percent of population: 12.36% (July 2018 est.)
Users rank: 141

Broadband fixed subscriptions
Total: 26,156 (2018 est.)
Rank: 146

Military expenditures:
Rank: 26

Military and security forces: Togolese Armed Forces (Forces Armees Togolaise, FAT): Togolese Army (l'Armee de Terre), Togolese Navy (Forces Naval Togolaises), Togolese Air Force (Armee de l’Air), National Gendarmerie (2020)

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for military service; 2-year service obligation; currently the military is only an all-volunteer force (2017)

National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 1 (2020)
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 8
Annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 566,295 (2018)
Annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 10.89 million
Note: mt-km (2018)

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: 5V (2016)

Airports: 8 (2013)
Rank: 163
With paved runways total: 2 (2019)
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 2
With unpaved runways total: 6 (2013)
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 4 (2013)
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 2 (2013)

Pipelines: 62 km gas

Railways
Total: 568 km (2014)
Narrow gauge: 568 km
Note: 1.000-m gauge (2014)
Rank: 111

Roadways
Total: 11,734 km (2,081)
Paved: 1794 km (2018)
Unpaved: 8,157 km (2018)
Urban: 1783 km (2018)
Rank: 133

Waterways: 50 km
Note: (seasonally navigable by small craft on the Mono River depending on rainfall) (2011)
Rank: 102

Merchant marine
Total: 405
By type: bulk carrier 5, container ship 5, general cargo 266, oil tanker 50, other 79 (2019)
Rank: 44

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Kpeme, Lome

Disputes international: in 2001, Benin claimed Togo moved boundary monuments - joint commission continues to resurvey the boundary; talks continue between Benin and Togo on funding the Adjrala hydroelectric dam on the Mona River

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees: 9,556 (Ghana) (2020)

Illicit drugs: transit hub for Nigerian heroin and cocaine traffickers; money laundering not a significant problem