In downtown Lome, food wholesaler Kofidjin Amouzou had to discard around $500 worth of rotting fish due to his freezer breaking down during Togo’s severe power cuts.
The West African nation has been plagued by outages for weeks, worsening in early May, with some capital areas experiencing all-day blackouts.
“I’m angry because it’s becoming more and more unbearable,” shopkeeper Nadege Ediyo told AFP, speaking from the dark entrance of her cosmetics store.
“No one is telling us clearly what’s going on.”
Facing rising discontent, the national electricity company CEET attributed the outages to “difficulties in the supply of natural gas at the national level, leading to restrictions from our external suppliers.”
Nigeria, facing its own load shedding issues, has limited electricity supplies to Togo, Niger, and Benin since May 1 for six months. Togo, heavily reliant on Nigerian electricity and several million dollars in debt to Nigeria’s electricity operator, felt the impact immediately.
Hair salon manager Jean Digla described the situation as “a real ordeal,” with daily income plummeting to 3,000-5,000 CFA francs ($5-8), a third of previous earnings. “The situation is suffocating us,” said Digla. “Who will reimburse us for our losses? Enough is enough,” echoed a restaurant manager.
Freezers and Generators
Some businesses have suffered significant losses. “My main freezer is damaged, my products spoil every day, and my losses have been enormous,” said Afiwa Nadou, a frozen food store manager.
Conversely, businesses like Tokoin Ramco, a generator market, are thriving. “Our sales have soared, and the crowds are great,” said dealer Ahmed Abou. Generator rental and repair shops are also experiencing a boom.
However, most traders are struggling, prompting calls for government action. “This disastrous situation is the direct consequence of calamitous and haphazard management of state resources,” said Edoh Komi, head of the MMLK civil society organization. “The state must take appropriate measures to prevent this crisis from continuing,” warned Emmanuel Sogadji, head of the Togo Consumers League.
The electricity crisis coincides with political tensions in Togo, following a contested constitutional reform allowing President Faure Gnassingbe to extend his nearly two-decade rule.
At a press conference on Saturday, Energy Minister Mila Aziable denied Togo’s debt to the Nigerian operator was behind the reduced electricity supply. She blamed maintenance work on power plants in Ghana and “major work on gas transport infrastructure in Nigeria” for the lack of gas and electricity in Togo, Benin, Ghana, and Nigeria.
