Togo is an independent nation in Western Africa. With the capital city of Lome, Togo 2020 population is estimated at 8,278,735 according to countryaah. The area where Togo is located has, throughout history, been of interest to both local kings and European colonial powers. A number of different people immigrated here and from here slaves were shipped to America. In the 19th century, Germany became a protective power over what they called Togoland. After Germany’s defeat in the First World War, the area was transferred to England and France. In 1956, the French (eastern) part became an autonomous republic within the French Commonwealth under the name Togo. In 1960 Togo became independent.
The first Ewe people began to migrate into the area from present-day Nigeria during the 13th and 13th centuries. The Portuguese came to the area in 1481 as the first Europeans. Along the coast of Togo, European forts and trading stations were established. In the 17th century, people from today’s Ghana, Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast started to migrate to Togo.
- AbbreviationFinder.org: Comprehensive guide to and popular abbreviations of Togo, covering history, economy, and social conditions.
Even before the colonial era, Ewe served as a link between warriors, who captured slaves, and traders in the coastal cities, who resold them. In the 1840s, German missionaries and merchants arrived in the area. In 1884, an agreement was signed between Germany and the leaders of the peoples of the area. Germany was thereby made “protectionist” – in effect colonial rulers – over what came to be called Togoland. The Germans founded large plantations and built up a well-functioning education system. For Togo political system, please check cancermatters.
After World War I, and Germany’s defeat in 1918, the League of Nations (NF, the forerunner of the United Nations) took over responsibility for the Togoland colony, which was divided into two parts: France was given responsibility for the eastern part, the present Togo, and Britain the west (which lies in today’s Ghana). The Ewe people in southern Togoland thus became divided, which later periodically led to contradictions.
After the end of the Second World War, France and Britain continued to be responsible for Togoland, now on behalf of the UN. In 1956, a referendum was held under the UN’s oversight of the area’s future status. In the British area, a majority voted for an association with the Gold Coast (now Ghana), despite strong opposition from ewe. The people of the French part chose to make this a self-governing republic within the French Commonwealth. It was named Togo.
The French appointed Nicolas Grunitzky, leader of Togo’s progress party, as prime minister, but when elections were held in 1958, the Committee for a United Togo, led by Grunitzky’s brother-in-law, businessman Sylvanus Olympio, prevailed. Olympio, who was a strong advocate for the reunification of the Eu people, was appointed prime minister and then became president when the country became independent in 1960.
2012
August
Yet another minister is dismissed
Municipal Minister Pascal Bodjona is dismissed and arrested a month later for suspected fraud attempt against an oil magnate from the United Arab Emirates.
July
The Prime Minister resigns
July 11
Prime Minister Gilbert Houngbo and several other ministers are surprisingly departing without publicizing why. In a brief press release, it says that President Gnassingbé accepts the resignation. In recent times, the government has received increasingly harsh criticism for failing to improve the living conditions of its residents. By all accounts, the President has dismissed Houngbo in an attempt to appease the opposition. New Prime Minister Kwesi Ahoomey-Zunu has been appointed new Prime Minister after just over a week.
June
Protest against new electoral laws
The newly formed opposition-led group Collective Save Togo (Collectif Sauvons le Togo, CST) protests against the new electoral laws (see May 2012). In Lomé, the protesters clash with the riot police for several days. Tens of thousands of people take part in the protests.
May
New electoral laws are adopted
The National Assembly approves new electoral laws. The number of MPs is increased from 81 to 91 and the boundaries of constituencies are tightened. The opposition opposes the changes, which in both cases are suspected of favoring the ruling party, and calls for the constitution that applied before 1992 to be reintroduced. According to it, there is a limit to how many times the president can be re-elected.
The Truth Commission reports
A Truth and Reconciliation Commission appointed in the fall of 2011 to investigate various forms of abuse committed in the country between 1958 and 2005 presents its report after examining 523 of the nearly 22,400 testimonies collected. The testimonies have been about violence that occurred in connection with general elections, coups, terrorist attacks, arrests, disappearances, murders and ethnic contradictions fueled by politically led militias. The Commission notes that the perpetrators of the violence have rarely or never been punished and that many of them still hold positions of power. The Truth Commission presents a list of 68 recommendations aimed at promoting respect for human rights, strengthening the rule of law, creating reconciliation between people’s groups and preventing new conflicts. The Commission proposes, inter alia, that the electoral system, the judiciary,
April
The president forms a new party
President Gnassingbé dissolves the ruling party RPT and creates a new party called the Union for the Republic (Union pour la Republique, Unir).
