Interview with Mr. Affoh Atcha-Dedji, Minister of Road, Air and Rail Transport since October 1, 2020, in charge of the national transport policy which should serve as a lever for the economic and social development of Togo.
What is the challenge of a railway infrastructure connecting the south to the north?
The construction of a railway infrastructure linking the south to the north presents multiple challenges for Togo. The main challenge is the rapid, safe, and less polluting transport of goods (containers, fuel, vehicles, cement, clinker, etc.) from the autonomous port of Lomé to the hinterland countries of Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali. Such infrastructure will give Togo competitive potential compared to other corridors in countries such as Benin, Ghana, and Côte d'Ivoire, in particular.
A south-north rail corridor will support the extraction of certain minerals such as iron from Bassar, whose reserves are estimated at 1.3 billion tonnes, or manganese from Nayéga, whose reserves are estimated at 8.5 million tonnes.
In addition to these flows of goods and minerals towards the hinterland countries or the autonomous port of Lomé, the railway will ensure the development of interregional transport of people and also agricultural products.
Where is the modernization of the road transport sub-sector?
The importance of the road transport subsector in our country's economy is well established. It provides over 90,000 tons of transportation for people and goods. This subsector therefore constitutes one of the components of growth and poverty reduction strategies.
For a decade, the Togolese Government, under the leadership of the Head of State His Excellency, Mr. Faure Essozimna GNASSINGBE, has undertaken a vast program of construction and modernization of road infrastructure, notably the two main corridors of the country Lomé-Ouagadougou and Abidjan-Lagos.
Regarding road transport services, several challenges must be addressed, including: the inadequate legal framework, the lack of professionalization of transport operators, the lack of reliable statistics on the sub-sector, the absence of a framework and opportunities for capacity building for stakeholders, the dilapidated state of the fleet and road insecurity.
In recent years, particular emphasis has also been placed on the development of road transport services in light of the ambition clearly displayed by the Government through the 2018-2022 national development plan and the 2020-2025 government roadmap which aims to make Togo a logistics and services hub.
To achieve this, the Government has initiated, with the support of technical and financial partners, notably the World Bank and the European Union, various projects with a view to reforming the road transport sub-sector and making it more competitive.
The Ministry of Road Transport has benefited from: technical assistance from the International Road Transport Union for the formalization and professionalization of the road transport sub-sector, technical assistance from the Louis Berger International firm for improving the governance of the road transport sub-sector and technical assistance from the International Committee for Automobile Technical Inspection for improving the vehicle inspection system in Togo.
To date, new texts are being drafted to define, among other things, the conditions for accessing and practicing road transport professions. A road transport training center is being built to strengthen the skills of transport company managers and truck drivers. A land transport observatory is being established with the mission of collecting, processing, and analyzing land transport data.
The National Road Safety Policy has been developed. Actions are underway to operationalize the bodies, including the National Road Safety Office.
What are the benefits for Togo of the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM), one of the projects of the African Union's Agenda 2063?
The Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM), one of the projects of the African Union's Agenda 2063, was launched on January 29, 2018, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The SAATM is established as part of the implementation of the Yamoussoukro Decision of November 14, 1999. The Decision aims to gradually eliminate all non-physical barriers to intra-African air transport and restrictions related to the granting of traffic rights.
For Togo, the MUTAA offers advantages in several dimensions. It allows the country to achieve ambition 5 (Assert the country's position as a logistics and services hub) of axis 2 of the government's roadmap. Indeed, the MUTAA strengthens the connectivity of Lomé International Airport. Ethiopian Airlines exercises traffic rights from Togo to the United States of America. Asky Airlines provides service to 24 destinations in 20 African countries from and to Lomé. This Togolese legal instrument has thus become an instrument of African integration.
What does the dry port of the Adétikopé industrial platform (PIA) bring to investors?
In the field of transport, the dry port of the Adétikopé Industrial Platform (PIA) facilitates the flow of goods to hinterland countries. With the presence of a one-stop shop, this site offers facilities in terms of administrative and customs formalities, helping to reduce transport times and costs of moving containers to their final destinations.