Togo is the fifth country outside the pan-European region to accede to the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (Water Convention), for which UNECE ensures the Secretariat. This comes as more and more countries – especially in Africa –are seizing the legal and intergovernmental framework of the Water Convention to support cooperation on shared water resources, following accessions by Guinea Bissau (2021), Ghana (2020), Senegal and Chad (2018).
More than two thirds of Togo’s water resources are shared, namely the Volta River basin (shared with Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Mali) and the Mono River basin (shared with Benin). In view of this community of interests, Togo was already a party to the Conventions on the status of the Volta and Mono rivers and to the establishment of the Volta Basin and Mono Basin Authorities.
Togo’s accession to the Water Convention will further support the efforts undertaken by Togolese authorities in the sustainable management of its water resources. It will contribute to improving its national water management, ensure the exchange of knowledge and experience with other countries, and support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular of its target 6.5 relative to the implementation of an integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation as appropriate.
For the Minister of Water and Village Hydraulics, His Excellency, Mr. Bolidja Tiem: "Joining the Water Convention offers Togo opportunities both in terms of strengthening governance at the national level as well as transboundary cooperation. In a context marked by increased pressure on the resource and the increase of uses, the Convention constitutes a legal framework of which the implementation, in addition to the regional frameworks, will certainly contribute to support the efforts of our country in terms of transboundary cooperation on our shared basins, conflict prevention and the promotion of peace and regional integration".
“I congratulate Togo on its accession”, declared UNECE Executive Secretary Ms. Olga Algayerova. “The growing interest of countries, in Africa and beyond, in acceding to the Water Convention shows how crucial transboundary water cooperation is for peace and security, and sustainable development. UNECE looks forward to sharing experience gained in 25 years under the Water Convention at the Meeting of the Parties starting today (29 September-1 October)”.
Togo’s accession to the Water Convention, which will enter into force on the ninetieth day after the date of deposit, reflects the growing interest in the Convention since its global opening in 2016.