(TOGO FIRST) – The new ambassadors of the United States and Brazil to Togo, respectively Elizabeth Fitzsimmons and nee Futuro Bettencourt, present their credentials to the Togolese head of state, President Faure Gnassingbe, on Tuesday, April 26, 2022.
It was an opportunity for the diplomats of these two economic powers on the American continent to review their bilateral cooperation with Lomé and present opportunities for political and economic cooperation.
The United States of America: Between the Economy, Good Governance and Security
, The United States would like to support the development of Togo ”, said the representative of Uncle Sam, for whom cooperation with Togo should be strengthened in the educational, economic, military and political spheres.
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, We discussed the deep and strong partnership between our two countries and I am sure that we will enhance the economic, cultural, educational, military and political ties between our two countries. I expect Togo to become a logistics and digital hub in West Africa with US support. ‘ He added.
In addition to cooperation in the areas of economics and good governance, the Biden government should strengthen its support in the field of security against the backdrop of security challenges in the Sahel region and the Gulf of Guinea. Thus, Togo is one of the countries that will collaborate with Uncle Sam as part of a multi-annual mission to prevent conflicts in Africa.
In April 2021, the United States committed to give Togo 24.7 billion CFA francs across various development projects, according to data compiled by Togo First.
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Brazil: between agriculture and military cooperation
For his part, he called the ambassador of Brazil. Very important cooperation in agriculture, especially cotton. In fact, through the Cotton 4+ project, Brazil is collaborating on white gold research and development with Togo as well as other countries such as Chad, Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso.
initiative that “He has already left a lot of structural and tangible advantage in Togo” It is a harbinger of cooperation in the agriculture sector.
, The project involved several cotton research centers and brought new high-yielding seeds, worker training and rural extension. “, He added.
If Ambassador Ni Futuro Bittencourt promises to work to strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries on both sides of the Atlantic, he should mention not only agricultural research, but also areas such as education, military training and security, Particularly in the north. Country, a country near the coast.
“We have a new project in the area of the Forage Corridor to accommodate the tensions arising from pastoral migration in the Northern Sahel and the Sahel countries. »said the diplomat.
In addition, the two partners maintain Good cooperation in training Togolese soldiers in Brazilian academies. We want to pay for all this and more. There are several common problems between Brazil and Togo.,
Brazil is also a mining camp for Togo, which is looking for new private partners to meet its economic growth ambitions. In the pre-pandemic context, Lomé envisions the creation of an economic forum between Togo and Brazil in order to increase the appetite of Brazilian investors.
In 2017, 3 years before COVID, trade between Togo and Brazil reached US$97 million, especially in the economic sphere.
It is worth remembering that if Brazil is only the eleventh economic power in the world, it is the second economic power in the American continent, just after the United States, and the first economy in the region and in the world.
I Renault Dusavik
