The economy of Togo has struggled greatly. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) ranks it as the tenth poorest country in the world, with development undercut by political instability, lowered commodity prices, and external debts. While industry and services play a role, the economy is dependent on subsistence agriculture, with industrialization and regional banking suffering major setbacks.
Marshal-Admiral The Marquis Tōgō Heihachirō, OM, GCVO, was a gensui or admiral of the fleet in the Imperial Japanese Navy and one of Japan's greatest naval heroes. As Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet during the Russo-Japanese War he successfully confined the Russian Pacific Fleet to Port Arthur before winning a decisive victory over a relieving fleet at Tsushima. Tōgō was termed by Western journalists as "the Nelson of the East".
Gnassingbé Eyadéma was the President of Togo from 1967 until his death in 2005. He participated in two successful military coups, in January 1963 and January 1967, and became President on April 14, 1967.
The flag of Togo is the national flag, ensign, and naval jack of Togo. It has five equal horizontal bands of green alternating with yellow. There is a white five-pointed star on a red square in the upper hoist-side corner. It uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia, but the design resembles the flag of Liberia which itself echoes the flag of the United States.
The Togo national football team, nicknamed Les Éperviers, is controlled by the Togolese Football Federation. The national football team of Togo made their debut in the FIFA World Cup in 2006. Their team bus underwent a fatal attack in Angola prior to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations. They withdrew and were subsequently banned from the following two tournaments by the Confederation of African Football (CAF). In 2013 for the first time in history, Togo reached the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations.
Togo's Eateries, Inc. is a United States chain of fast casual sandwich restaurants owned by Nimes Capital, who purchased the company from private equity firm Mainsail Partners in December 2015. Its headquarters are in San Jose, California.
Togo is divided into five regions :
The unicameral National Assembly is Togo's legislative body. It has a total of 91 members who are elected in a party list proportional representation system. Members serve five-year terms.
The Republic of Togo is divided into five regions which are subdivided into 30 prefectures. These various prefectures of Togo are shown according to their respective regions below.
Togo has sent athletes to every Summer Olympic Games held since 1972 except for 1976 and 1980, winning their first Olympic medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics when Benjamin Boukpeti won bronze in the K1 kayak slalom event.
The Togo national rugby union team represents Togo in international rugby union. Togo are a member of the International Rugby Board (IRB), and have yet to play in a Rugby World Cup tournament. Togo played their first international in 2001, losing to Nigeria. They won their first match in 2003, defeating Mauritania.
Togo–United States relations are bilateral relations between Togo and the United States.
Visitors to Togo must obtain a visa on arrival to Togo unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries. Alternatively they may obtain a visa from one of the Togolese diplomatic missions. All passports must have at least 2 blank pages, and be valid for at least 1 year upon arrival at Togo.
India–Togo relations refers to the international relations that exist between India and Togo.
The 2017–18 Togolese protests are a significant representation of civil unrest in Togo and against the 50 year rule of the father-son combination of Gnassingbé Eyadéma and Faure Gnassingbé. The protesters demanded that the president honour the 1992 constitution, and demanding that he step down immediately. Gnassingbé offered the protesters the option of enacting the two-term limit set in the constitution effective from 2018, thus ensuring that he could stay in power until 2030. This has been rejected by the opposition. As the protests continued, the opposition started focusing more on protesting Gnassingbé's rule.
Protests against Faure Gnassingbé have occurred throughout Togo starting when Faure Gnassingbé assumed power after the death of his father Gnassingbé Eyadéma in February 2005.
