Togo, twice the size of Maryland, is on the south coast of West Africa bordering on Ghana to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Benin to the east. The Gulf of Guinea coastline, only 32 mi long (51 km), is low and sandy. The only port is at Lomé. The Togo hills traverse the central section. Economy and Trade Relations: Major Industries: Agriculture, Cement, Food Processing, Mining, Textiles. Togo is the world's fourth-largest phosphate producer. Phosphate is a mineral used to produce fertilizers. Reserves are estimated at 260 million metric tons of first-class phosphate and 1 billion metric tons of carbonate phosphate. Deposits were found in 1952 not far from Lomé. The good geological characteristics and geographical position led to a low cost for extraction India and Togo have cordial bilateral relations. India’s export figure to Togo has reached US$ 163.51 million in 2009-10.India has provided economic assistance to Togo in the form of water pumps, sewing machines, ambulance, transport vehicles and corn- grinding machines. The Government of Togo has expressed keen interest in seeking India’s assistance in its economic development, especially in the fields of information and communication technology, agriculture and health. Togo has invited Indian companies to engage in the country’s phosphate, oil, mining, and tourism sectors. Key products exported from India to Togo are cotton, manmade filaments, iron and steel, and manmade staple fibers. Indian community in Togo is small and there are about 200-300 Indians living in the country. Most of them are businessmen engaged in trading, assembling, super markets, hotels etc. The community has an Association though not very active due to the small size of the community. Literacy Rate in Togo: 57% Language spoken in Togo: French is the official language of Togo
AIESEC India | National Stakeholders’ Summit 2012
9