China Eximbank provides a $25 million USD loan for the E-Government Network Project

Project narrative

In July 2010, the Government of Togo announced that it secured a $25 million loan USD (CFA 15 billion francs) from the Export-Import Bank of China for the E-Government Network Project. On November 11, 2010, Togolese authorities signed, but not ratify the China Eximbank loan because they had learned that the loan’s financing terms narrowly failed to meet the concessionality requirements under the International Monetary Fund's Extended Credit Facility (ECF) supported program. The Togolese authorities postponed ratification of the loan agreement until the loan’s terms were renegotiated to be consistent with the minimum level of concessionality. The loan was eventually ratified, and carried the following terms: a maturity of 20 years, a grace period of 5 years, and an interest rate of 2%. In 2015, $13,884,880 USD of the proceeds from this loan were disbursed, and in 2016, $4,215,852 of the proceeds were disbursed. The project sought to link 287 public and private institutions — including government ministries and agencies, banks, insurance companies, schools and hospitals — and 560 buildings total through the creation of a 250 km fiber optic network. The network primarily sought to link institutions in the city of Lomé (and its surrounding areas) and Kara and provide them with access to high-speed internet. The project sought to provide government administration with high-speed internet access, improve the flow of information between administrative services and between users and servies, optimize administrative procedures and procedures, and provide state officials with a modern digital environment. Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. was the contractor responsible for implementation. Huawei worked under Togo’s Ministry of Posts and the Digital Economy, and provided the optical fiber, equipment, and training necessary for the project. Phase 1 of the project was launched on June 18, 2014. The official launch ceremony was on March 10, 2015. The project was officially completed on April 24, 2017 with the Phase 1 inauguration ceremony, which was attended by the President of Togo Faure Gnassingbé and the Chinese Ambassador to Togo Liu Yuxi.