Foundation Islamic Union
Togo
Official name: Republic of Togo (TG)
Capital: Lome
Important Cities: 5 regions; De La Kara, Des Plateaux, Des Savanes, Du Centre, Maritime.
Area : 56,785 km²
Population : 8,500.000 (2021)[1]
Average Human Lifespan: 54 years.
Ethnicity: African natives (37 tribes; Ewe, Mina, and Kabre are the largest) 99 per cent,
Europeans, Syrian and Lebanese 1%.
Language: French (official and commercial language), Ewe and Mina , Kabye.
Religion: Local beliefs 59%, Christian 29%, Muslim 20%.
Geography: Located in West Africa, on the coast of the Gulf of Benin, between Benin and Ghana.
The country has the appearance of a plateau that gradually descends from north to south. The southern part of the country is known as the Lomé basin. The largest of the lakes of various sizes on these coasts, which are shaped by a narrow strip of low sand dunes, is Lake Togo.
Economy: 47.4% of the gross national product is derived from agriculture, 25.4% from industry and 27.2% from the service sector. Although 44.2% of the land is suitable for agriculture, only 70 square kilometres of it is irrigable. The main products of economic importance are cocoa, coffee and cotton, which account for 40 per cent of total exports. Other crops include yam (Indian yam), kassava (cassava), maize, beans, paddy and millet. Some basic foodstuffs are imported. Cattle breeding is mostly developed in the country. Two major droughts between 1971-2007 affected approximately 550.000 people and six major floods in the same period affected 400.000 people. Togo, whose most important natural resources are phosphate, limestone and marble, is the world's fourth largest phosphate producer. Rich phosphate deposits are found near Lake Togo. Most of the industry is based on phosphate mining. Industrial plants are clustered around the capital Lomé. About a quarter of exports go to neighbouring countries. Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, Burkina Faso, India and Ghana are the main export destinations. Cotton, cement, phosphate, cocoa and coffee are the main exports; machinery and equipment, basic foodstuffs and petroleum products are imported goods. Togo's lack of oil and natural gas has caused it to be dependent on foreign energy resources. China, France, India, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom are the countries from which Togo imports the most goods. Transport is carried out through eight airports, 532 km. railway line and 7520 km. highway, about two-thirds of which is made up of dirt roads. In addition, during the rainy season, 50 kilometres of the Mono River, which is also the most important water source of the country, is used for transport. The main port is Lomé, which, in addition to Togo, is also used by landlocked countries such as Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.
Mode of Government: Republic
History: Togo's pre-colonial history seems to have been lost in the history of neighbouring countries. Many black tribes of different ethnic origins living in neighbouring countries migrated to various parts of the country, some of them mixed with each other and some of them lived independently. The Portuguese were the first of the colonial powers to arrive at the end of the 15th century. Since their arrival, the coasts began to fill with outposts established for the capture, collection and export of slaves. This situation lasted for about five centuries. For this reason, the coasts of Togo and Ghana were called the Slave Coast. The French, who first came to the coast of Togo in 1626 and then in 1787, established a military base in Anécho, but were only able to take the region under their control between 1865 and 1883. Octavio Olympio, one of the founders of the city of Lomé, turned it into an important centre for the slave trade.
After the 1961 elections, the presidential system was introduced. Nicolas Grunitzky, the first prime minister after independence and supported by France, won the elections and became president. A new parliament was established with the constitution that came into force the same year. However, in 1967, Chief of Staff Etienne Gnassingbé Eyadéma took control of the government with a military coup and closed down political parties. With a new constitution drafted in 1979, the country switched to a single-party system. Eyadéma was elected president in the first election. He also won elections in 1986; in 1990, in the face of opposition-led demonstrations, he was forced to appoint Joseph Koku Koffigoh of the opposition as prime minister. In 1992, a new constitution was drafted to ease the tense atmosphere. Eyadéma was elected president for the third time in the 1993 elections boycotted by the opposition. After winning the 1998 and 2003 elections, Eyadéma remained in office until his death in 2005. He was temporarily replaced by the president of the Muslim parliament, al-Hâj Abbas Bonfoh. On 25 April 2005, after Gnassingbé controversially won the elections, the country erupted in unrest, killing 500 people according to official figures, 800 according to the Togo Human Rights Organisation, and 40,000 Togolese fled to neighbouring Benin and Ghana. When the situation calmed down, the new president took office on 3 May 2005. In February 2010, he won the presidential elections for the second time. Upon these developments, the European Union lifted the embargo it had imposed against the country for thirteen years.
Islamisation in the country: Islamisation in Togo, one of the countries with the newest Islamisation among the African countries, entered Togo in the 17th century through Muslim scholars and merchants who migrated here from the northern, eastern and western borders of the surrounding countries. Different branches of the Mandings from Mali and Niger from the north, and the Hevsâ and Yoruba from Nigeria formed the first nucleus of the Islamic society here. Muslims from the Ivory Coast and Ghana, west of Togo, settled in and around the city of Mango. The Yoruba and Nago tribes from Nigeria made up the largest group of Muslim immigrants. Lomé Central Mosque was built in their neighbourhood. These tribes were followed by the Hawsâ, who settled in their own neighbourhood called Zongo. In the last sixty years, some 110 mosques for Friday prayers have been built in Lomé; this number is increasing every year.
The Tchokossi from Côte d'Ivoire, the Gurma from Burkina Faso, the Cerma from Niger, and the Hevsâ, Fûlânîs and Yoruba from the Niger basin and other parts of Nigeria formed the largest Muslim populations. The pagan tribes in the north of Togo were influenced by the people of the Muslim emirates of Dagomba and Mamproussi in neighbouring Ghana. The spread of Islam in the region was also influenced by the Hevsâ merchants and the Fûlânî shepherds. In the 18th century, traders from Bilâdüssûdan established their own neighbourhoods in settlements along the trade routes and married local women. Among the natives of Togo, most of the Tchokossi, Basari and especially Kotokoli ethnic groups converted to Islam. The Kotokolis, who live in the north of the country in the region of Sokodé and its neighbourhood and are called Tem, are famous for their piety. Thanks to them, Islam spread in the region and many mosques were built. The first known mosque in Togo was built in 1820 by King Uro Jobo II of Kotokoli, who converted to Islam;
It was built in 1820 by King Uro Jobo II of Kotokoli. After the death of the king in 1875, Uro Jobo III, who faced a fierce animist resistance due to his attempt to convert all Kotokolis to Islam, had to declare that he had abandoned Islam when the resistance turned into rebellion and civil war. The struggle between Muslims and animists continued during the colonial period. Today there are over 150 mosques in the region, thirty-three of them in the city centre of Sokodé. In the early 1970s, almost two-thirds of Togo's Muslims lived in the north of the country.
The spread of Islam in the country continued during the German and French colonial rule. Together with immigrants from neighbouring countries, the Muslim population tripled in forty-five years. Aided by Muslim leaders, French administrators authorised and financially supported the construction of mosques in many towns, notably Sokodé and Lomé. Muslim migration from neighbouring countries continued after independence. The establishment of diplomatic missions by Arab countries also helped to increase the number of Muslims. In 1963, the establishment of the Union of Muslims of Togo, the recognition of Islam among the official religions, the broadcasting of Friday sermons on Togo Radio and the acceptance of Muslims as a respectable society strengthened their status in Togo. In 1969, there were many Muslims among the 600.000 people who defected to Togo due to the civil unrest in Ghana.
When independence was declared, 134.370 of the country's population of 1.545.585 were Muslims. The number of Muslims reached 330.000 within ten years. The difference clearly shows the speed of the spread of Islam. The distribution of Muslims within the country varies. Their ratio to the total population is 39% in the central part of the country, 18% in the land region, 16.8% in the high plateaus, 14% in the Savanna region and 12% on the coastline. It is expressed as 35% by the Union of Muslims of Togo.
Sokodé is one of the cities where Muslims are the most densely populated and it has a special feature in terms of being the first city where Islamisation started. It is followed by Tchamba 35 km. to the east, Bafilo 50 km. to the north and Mango and Dapaong 200 km. to the north. In the south of the country, the Muslim population in Lomé and Atakpamé is mainly made up of immigrants from the north and neighbouring countries. Their neighbourhoods bear the name Zongo, taken from the language of the Hevsâ from Nigeria, which later became the name of the neighbourhoods inhabited by outsiders to Togo. With the advantage of being an important trade and business centre in the last fifty years, Lomé has become the most important city where Muslims are concentrated with its newly built mosques, Qur'an courses, madrasas and libraries.
The most important organisation representing Islam is the Union of Muslims of Togo, which was established on 27 September 1963 to raise the cultural level of Muslims in the country. The aim of the Union is to ensure unity among Muslims, to develop Qur'anic schools, to build mosques and to organise pilgrimages. Idrissou Noumani, who was appointed president of the Union of Muslims of Togo in 1970, was the head of the political bureau that played an important role in the political unrest of 1972. According to his statements, one third of the country's population of over 6 million is Muslim. The Union of Muslims of Togo, with contributions from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, opened three Qur'anic schools in Lomé, Palimé and Sokodé. Arabic and religious studies teachers were brought from Egypt. Muhammad Belly, one of the directors of the Union, increased relations with Arab countries and eighty-two students were sent to Egypt and Morocco between 1962 and 1972. Their return was instrumental in raising generations with a high scientific level in the country. However, this organisation has become the target of some criticism in recent years due to its strong support to the government. The Tijâniyya sect, which has the highest number of followers in Togo, played an important role in the spread of Islam in the country. The leaders of the sect ensured that Muslims stayed away from oppression thanks to their harmonious attitude towards the government. Kādirīs are particularly numerous in and around Dapaong. The Terbiye sect of the Senegalese Sufi Ibrahima Nyass is quite widespread in Sokodé.
There are eight madrasas built by the Union of Muslims of Togo in Lomé, Kara, Sokodé, Tchamba, Bafilo, Mango, Kpalimé and Dapaong, as well as schools in Arabic and French. In addition, the Islamic Cultural Centre of Lomé was built with contributions from Libya and the United Arab Emirates, and an Islamic education complex was built by the Islamic Development Bank. In 1997, it officially became a member of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference.[2]
Natural resources: Phosphate, limestone, marble, arable land, livestock, fish,
Currency: African Franc (XOF)
National Income per Capita: 2,261 USD (2021)[3]
Export products: Cotton, phosphate, coffee, cocoa,
Export partners: Nigeria, Brazil, Canada, Philippines
Import products: Machinery and parts, foodstuffs, petroleum products,
Import partners: Ghana, China, France, Ivory Coast,
Industry: Phosphate mining, agricultural products, cement, handicrafts, textiles, soft drinks.
Energy: Electricity consumption: 511.6 million kWh
Transport: Railways: 525 km, Highways: 7,520 km, waterways: 50 km,Ports: Kpeme, Lome, Airports: 9 (2021verileri).[4]
Health: Infant mortality rate: 70.43 deaths/1,000 babies born (2001 estimate)
Education: Literacy rate: Data for 15 years and over, total population: 51.7%.
International Organisations and Institutions: ACCT, ACP (African - Caribbean - Pacific Countries), AfDB (African Development Bank), CCC (Customs Cooperation Council) FAO, ILO, IMF, OIC-OIC[5]
[1] www.ticaret.gov.tr (November-2021 Access)
[2] Encyclopaedia of Islam, TDV.
[3] www.ticaret.gov.tr(November-2021 Access)
[4] www.ticaret.gov.tr(Accessed November-2021)
[5] www.oic-oci.org
