OFFICIAL NAME: Republic of Togo
CAPITAL: Lome
SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT: Multiparty Republic with Interim Military Regime
AREA: 56,785 Sq Km (21,925 Sq Mi)
ESTIMATED 2000 POPULATION: 4,617,800

LOCATION & GEOGRAPHY: Togo is located in West Africa. It is bound by Ghana to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Benin to the east and the Gulf of Guinea to the south. The country consists of two savannah plains separated by a range of hills called the Chaine du Togo and the country is divided into six topographical regions from south to north. (1.) The sandy beaches, estuaries and lagoons of the coastal belt. (2.) The Ouatchi Plains. (3.) The higher Mono Tablelands. (4.) The Chaine du Togo. (5.) The northern sandstone Oti Plateau and (6.) the northwestern granite regions. The principal rivers are the Oti, Kara and Mo. Major Cities (pop. est.); Lome 366,500, Sokode 49,000, Kpalime 28,000 (1983). Land Use; forested 16%, pastures 4%, agricultural-cultivated 45%, other 35% (1993).

CLIMATE: Togo has a tropical climate with two wet seasons in the south, one from March to July and the other from September to November, while the north has one wet season from April to July. Most rainfall occurs in the mountains while coastal regions are basically dry. Average annual precipitation is 1,020 mm (40 inches) in the north and 1,780 mm (70 inches) in the west, southwest and center. The northern regions have a savannah climate with a longer dry season. The average annual temperature in Lome is 27 degrees Celsius (81 degrees Fahrenheit) all year.

PEOPLE: The population is divided into two halves with those of the Hamitic origin in the north and those of Ewe origin in the south. Over 37 tribal groups constitute the total population with some 2,000 Europeans and a few Lebanese the principal non-Africans.

DEMOGRAPHIC/VITAL STATISTICS: Density; 63.3 persons per sq km (164.0 persons per sq mi) (1991). Urban-Rural; 25.7% urban, 74.3% rural (1990). Sex Distribution; 49.5% male, 51.5% female (1990). Life Expectancy at Birth; 51.3 years male, 54.8 years female (1990). Age Breakdown; 45% under 15, 26% 15 to 29, 15% 30 to 44, 9% 45 to 59, 5% 60 and over (1990). Birth Rate; 44.7 per 1,000 (1990). Death Rate; 14.1 per 1,000 (1990). Increase Rate; 30.6 per 1,000 (1990). Infant Mortality Rate; 94.0 per 1,000 live births (1990).

RELIGIONS: An estimated 58% of the population follow local native tribal beliefs while 28% are Christians and 12% are Muslims.

LANGUAGES: The official language is French which is used for media and commerce purposes. Over 44 African dialects are spoken with the principal southern language Evegbe or Ewe with Hausa, Twi, Dagomba, Tim, Cabrais and Fongbi spoken in the north.

EDUCATION: Aged 15 or over and having attained: no formal schooling 76.5%, primary 13.5%, secondary 8.7%, higher 1.3% (1981). Literacy; literate population aged 15 or over 631,700 or 39.1% (1985).

MODERN HISTORY - WWII TO 1993: In 1956 British Togoland joined the Gold Coast and gained independence as Ghana in 1957. In Oct. 1957 French Togoland voted to become an autonomous republic within the French Community and internal self-government was granted in 1958. On Apr. 27, 1960 French Togoland became the independent Republic of Togo with Sylvanus Olympio as President. In 1961 Pres. Olympio banned all opposition political parties. In Jan. 1963 a group of northern army officers led by Sgt. Etienne Gnassingbe Eyadema overthrew the government and assassinated Pres. Olympio, who was a southerner. In 1963 Nicolas Grunitzky who was Olympio's brother-in-law returned from exile and was appointed President. Pres. Grunitzky established fresh multiparty elections and a new constitution. In Jan. 1967 Eyadema ousted Pres. Grunitzky and appointed himself as President. Pres. Eyadema abolished the constitution and all political parties. In 1969 Pres. Eyadema established the Rassemblement du Peuple Togolais (RPT) party and in 1972 a referendum approved his rule. In 1977 there were demonstrations and strikes, and in 1978 another referendum approved the establishment of a new constitution. In Dec. 1979 Pres. Eyadema was re-elected and again in Dec. 1986. During 1986 there were various terrorist attacks and bombings. In 1987 Pres. Eyadema agreed to hold talks with the banned political parties and in late 1987 and early 1988 released around 500 political prisoners. In Mar. 1990 several independent candidates were elected to the National Assembly. In Oct. 1990 dozens of demonstrators were arrested after attacking government offices and vehicles in protest to the imprisonment of two opposition party leaders. In April 1991 the corpses of 27 people discovered in one of the capital's lagoons, allegedly killed by security forces, led to mass strikes and antigovernment protests throughout the country. On April 12, 1991 Pres. Eyadema legalized opposition parties in an attempt to quell the growing unrest. In June 1991 a mass general strike led Pres. Eyadema to convene a national conference which on July 16, 1991 suspended the constitution and declared itself in control. Following which government and military representatives alleged a civilian coup and on Aug 26, 1991 troops attempted to storm the convention center, although thousands of civilians that had formed a human barricade forced them to withdraw. On Aug. 28, 1991 the national conference elected Kokou Koffigoh as Prime Minister of a transitional government (Supreme Republican Council) which announced it would remove most of the presidential powers. On Oct. and Nov. 1991 rebel troops unsuccessfully attempted countercoups. On Dec. 3, 1991 the rebel troops loyal to Pres. Eyadema stormed the Prime Minister's residence seizing Koffigoh, following which Pres. Eyadema announced that he and Koffigoh had agreed to form a provision government. In 1992 the military attempted to restore the Presidential powers that the Supreme Republican Council had stripped from Pres. Eyadema. In May 1992 the death of10 people led to mass demonstrations with protesters calling for the resignation of both Eyadema and Koffigoh. On July 13, 1992 opposition leader, Tavio Amorin was ambushed and later died which led to a mass strike that severely affected the capital. On Sept. 14, 1992 Prime Minister Koffigoh formed a new Cabinet following news of troops loyal to Pres. Eyadema seizing a radio station. On Sept. 25, 1992 the National Assembly ratified the country's new multiparty constitution and in Oct. 1992 pro-Eyadema soldiers occupied the Assembly building holding the chairman and 38 other members hostage until the chairman agreed to release the frozen assets of Pres. Eyadema's Rally of the Togolese People party which was dissolved in 1991. On Jan. 25, 1993 police opened fire killing some 20 demonstrators awaiting the arrival of foreign dignitaries who were to assist in re-kindling the stalled political reform process, following which the EU suspended all aid. On Jan. 30, 1993 pro-Eyadema troops attacked the homes of opposition leaders. In April and May 1993 the offices of three opposition newspapers were destroyed which led to further unrest. On Aug. 25, 1993 Presidential elections resulted in the reelection of Eyadema after five opposition candidates withdrew.

CURRENCY: The official currency is the CFA Franc (Communaute Financiere Africaine-CFAF) divided into 100 Centimes.

ECONOMY: Gross National Product; USD $1,329,000,000 (1993). Public Debt; USD $1,128,000,000 (1993). Imports; CFAF 134,500,000,000 (1994). Exports; CFAF 144,600,000,000 (1994). Tourism Receipts; USD $18,000,000 (1993). Balance of Trade; CFAF 10,100,000,000 (1994). Economically Active Population; 1,501,000 or 39.9% of total population (1992). Unemployed; 17% (1994).

MAIN TRADING PARTNERS: Its main trading partners are France, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands and Japan.

MAIN PRIMARY PRODUCTS: Cassava, Cocoa, Coffee, Cotton, Ground Nuts, Maize, Millet, Oil Palms, Phosphates.

MAJOR INDUSTRIES: Agriculture, Cement, Food Processing, Mining, Textiles.

MAIN EXPORTS: Cocoa, Coffee, Phosphates.

TRANSPORT: Railroads; route length 537 km (334 mi) (1990), passenger-km 109,000,000 (67,729,000 passenger-mi) (1986), cargo ton-km 11,000,000 (7,534,000 short ton-mi) (1986). Roads; length 7,545 km (4,688 mi) (1989). Vehicles; cars 47,083 (1988), trucks and buses 22,230 (1988). Merchant Marine; vessels 12 (1990), deadweight tonnage 77,595 (1990). Air Transport; passenger-km 32,344,000 (20,098,000 passenger-mi) (1989), cargo ton-km 5,753,000 (3,940,000 short ton-mi) (1989).

COMMUNICATIONS: Daily Newspapers; total of 2 with a total circulation of 12,000 (1992). Radio; receivers 720,000 (1994). Television; receivers 150,000 (1994). Telephones; units 17,300 (1993).

MILITARY: 6,950 (1995) total active duty personnel with 93.5% army, 2.9% navy and 3.6% air force while military expenditure accounts for 2.9% (1993) of the Gross National Product (GNP).

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