8th Period: Hip Hop Hippos

Country: Togo

Important Facts:

• President:: Faure Gnassingbe
• Prime Minister:: Komlan Mally
• Population:: 6,019,877
• Main Language:: French
• Religion:: Indigonous Beliefs 51% Christian 29% Islam 20%
• Size:: Twice the size of Maryland, USA; 21925 sq miles
• Location:: South coast of west africa

Information provided by: 72

Geography:

• Togo is between Benin and Ghana which is in Western Africa.
• Compared to the U.S., Togo is slightly smaller than West Virginia.
• Its climate is normally tropical which is hot and humid.
• It has a variety of different types of terrain.
• Some natural resources that Togo has are, phosphate, limestone, marble, and arable land.
• The ages are very different than the ages in America. 41% of the population is 0-14 years old, 55% is 15-64 years old, and only 2% are 65 and over.
• Togo is ranked 21 in the world to have the most adult prevalence rate.
• They all have a very high risk of infectious deseases including waterborne diseases, respiratory diseases, and animal contact diseases.
• 99% of the people are African and less than 1% are European and Syrian-Lebanese.
• The religious beliefs very more, 29% are Christian, 20% Muslim, and 51% are indigenous beliefs.

The white area is Togo

Information provided by: 59


The red square is Togo.




The official name of Togo is République Togolaise which is Togolese republic.


Global Ministres is helping the poor and disabled people in Togo through the Council of churches.

The offical language of Togo is French.

The women of Togo still are not considered to be equal to the men in Togo. They have a commitee of woman that is called Togo's Consultative Commitee of Women of Togo, they meet in Lome, which is the capital, every tuesday.

They are frustrated because they are doing most of the trade, agriculture, and services; but still do not have as much say in the government.
Information provided by: 59

History:
Togo is named after the town of Togoville, where Gustav Nachtigal signed a treaty with Mlapa III in 1884, establishing a German protectorate.
Togo is an Ewe (pronounced Ev'hé) word meaning "lake" or "lagoon." Since 1884, Togoland and later Togo became synonymous for the entire region under colonial control.
The term Togolese first appeared after World War I, and the population increasingly identified with this term, culminating in 1960 with the choice of the Republic of Togo as the official name.
The city of Lomé and the coastal region are deeply influenced by the architectural programs of the successive colonial regimes.
Vestiges of the German administrative buildings, several cathedrals and many churches, as well as private houses can be found throughout the country, though German influence was less pervasive in the north.
The British period featured no architectural innovation, but more than forty years of French administration left its mark, most prominently in the work of Georges Coustereau.
The works of this Frenchman are to be found throughout the country and include the national independence monument and an unusual church in the small town of Kpele-Ele.
During the prosperous 1960s and 1970s, the president inaugurated an extravagant program, lavishing upon Lomé and his home town of Kara five-star hotels, a new port, and sports and government buildings.
In 1960 the French Togoland became Togo.
In 1967 Gnassingbe Eyadema was the military ruler for around four decades.
The skyline of Lomé is broken by four enormous skyscrapers, most prominently the five-star Hotel Deux Février.
Since the economic decline of the 1980s and indebtedness, few new projects have succeeded.
The Chinese government, however, funded the building of a forty-thousand-seat stadium, which opened in 2000.
In the dire economic climate at the end of the twentieth century, private Togolese citizens invest their small incomes in private building, usually constructed by homemade concrete bricks.
The vast majority, however, live in rural settings in a variety of traditional village designs: centralized, dispersed, on stilts, or in two-story conical mud huts like those of the Tamberma. Enclosures are gendered spaces, with the external kitchen area a female realm.Information provided by:
Information provided by 59, 60, 61 and 62

Concise Historical Timeline:
15-17th centuries - Ewe clans from Nigeria and the Ane from Ghana and Ivory Coast settle in region already occupied by Kwa and Voltaic peoples.


1914 - British, French forces seize Togoland.

1922 - League of Nations issues mandates to Britain to administer the western part and to France to rule the eastern area of Togoland.

Independence

1956 - British-ruled western territory included into the Gold Coast, later renamed Ghana.

1960 - Independence.

1961 - Sylvanus Olympio elected as first president.

1963 - Olympio assassinated, replaced by Nicolas Grunitzky.

1967 - Gnassingbe Eyadema seizes power in bloodless coup, political parties dissolved.

1985 - Series of bombings in Lome.

1985 - Coup attempt, French troops come to government's assistance. Togo accuses Ghana and Burkina Faso of involvement. Togo's frontier with Ghana shut until 1987.

1986 - Exiled opposition leader Gilchrist Olympio sentenced to death in absentia for complicity in 1985 coup attempt.

1992 - New constitution approved.

1993 - Eyadema dissolves government, sparking protests and fatal clashes with police. Thousands flee to neighbouring states.

1993 - France, Germany, US suspend aid to press for democratic reforms.

2000 March - UN report alleges that presidents Blaise Compaore of Burkina Faso and Gnassingbe Eyadema of Togo helped the Angolan rebel group Unita get arms and fuel in exchange for diamonds. Both countries deny the accusations.

2001 February - UN-OAUl inquiry into allegations of summary executions and torture in Togo concludes there were systematic violations of human rights after 1998 presidential election.

2001 August - Opposition leader Yawovi Agboyibo is jailed for six months for libelling the prime minister. Demonstrators take to the streets.

2002 June - Eyadema sacks his prime minister and ally Agbeyome Kodjo and says the action is in preparation for parliamentary elections. Kodjo lambasts the president and accuses his aides of corruption and human rights abuses.

2002 October - Ruling party wins parliamentary elections. Main opposition parties stage boycott in protest at way poll was organised.

2002 December - Parliament alters the constitution, removing a clause which would have barred President Eyadema from seeking a third term in 2003.

2003 September - Togo sends 150 soldiers to Liberia to bolster a West African peacekeeping force.

2004 November - European Union restores partial diplomatic relations. Ties were broken in 1993 over violence and democratic shortcomings.

2005 February - President Gnassingbe Eyadema dies, aged 69. The military appoints his son Faure as president in a move condemned as a coup. Under international pressure Faure stands down and agrees to hold presidential elections.

Faure Gnassingbe elected

2005 April - Faure Gnassingbe wins presidential elections which the opposition condemns as rigged. The vote is followed by deadly street violence between rival supporters. The UN later estimates that 400-500 people were killed.

2005 June - President Gnassingbe names opposition's Edem Kodjo as prime minister.

2006 April - Reconciliation talks between government and opposition resume. Dialogue was abandoned after Gnassingbe Eyadema's death in 2005.

2006 August - Government and opposition sign an accord providing for the participation of opposition parties in a transitional government.

2006 September - Yawovi Agboyibo, veteran leader of the opposition Committee of Action for Renewal, is named prime minister and tasked with forming a unity government and organising polls.

2007 February - Exiled opposition leader Gilchrist Olympio returns home briefly.

2007 October - Ruling Rally of the Togolese People party wins parliamentary election. International observers declare the poll free and fair.

2007 November - The European Union restores full economic cooperation after a 14-year suspension, citing Togo's successful multi-party elections.

2007 December - Rally of the Togolese People's Komlan Mally appointed prime minister

2008 September - Former UN official Gilbert Houngbo appointed prime minister with support of governing Rally of the Togolese People.

2009 April - President Gnassingbe's half-brother and former Defence Minister Kpatcha Gnassingbe and several army officers are arrested in connection with an alleged coup plot against the president.

Culture:
There are three main groups that settled in Togo. Guin and Mina are from Ghana and a tribe named Ewe from Benin and Nigeria. The different tribable things that these tribes do add to the mix of cuture in Togo.
There is also Kabye Dagomba another tribe that adds to this.
There is a festival called Evala, which is a fighting festival that can last for up to ten days.
The president and most of the natives all attend this event.
On january 13th Togo celebrates the Liberation Day of Togo. On April 27th they celebrate Independence day of Togo.
Fufu is a traditional dish made from yams.
Pates is also another traditional dish, it is dough, that is normally served with vegetables and sauces.
Kokonte is a pates mafe from locally grown Cassava.
Riz Sauce Arachide is a peanut sauce with rice and is a healthy food.
German beer is a very popular drink in Togo.
Togo has been to the Olympics in jumping events, but only made it to the preliminary rounds.
Their soccer team Les Eperviers has done very well in the Fifa world cup.
Information provided by 59, 60, 61 and 62

Common celebrations:
New Years Day, Prophets Birthday or Lord Buddhas Birthday, Labor Day, Ascension Day, Assumption Day, All Saints Day, Eid al Fitr, Eud al Adha and Christmas Day.
Information provided by: 59

Current Issue:
The orgination Plan West Africa has done a study on child trafficing in five major areas in Africa. These areas were Sierra Leone, Liberia, Burkina Faso, Togo and Cameroon. Togo is not really needing more orphanages, but they do need to protect the children from AIDs. The rate of rape in Togo is very high. The girls leave their houses to work around ages 9-11 this is when they are vulnerable to rape and being sexually abused. STD's are also very common in that area and that is another problem for those young girls. They also are changed for life because of the experiance.

A way the Plan group is trying to help them is to build orphanages in Togo. This would provide a place for those girls to go and not be harmed. This would help the rate of rape and sexually abused children go down. Money to the famillies is another way to help.
Information provided by: 59

Solution Letter:

Patricia McMahon Hawkins

Boulevard Ayadema
B.P. 852, Lomi

Dear Ambassador,

We have come to a conclusion that your country should fight against women and child trafficking. The children and women in your country do not deserve to be treated that way. They do not have a choice in where they are born. You should support the organizations that are trying to stop human trafficking. One of the organizations is Plan West Africa. They are trying to help by building orphanages so the children will have a place to go. If you would be so kind to donate money to this organization, it will help stop human trafficking.

The reason for human trafficking is because your country is so low in poverty.

Women and children do not have a choice in this. If their family is low on money, they have to get sold to despicable men that sexually abuse them. If you could help the men get jobs and help donate money, then this issue could be stopped. Human trafficking is a big issue in a lot of countries. If your country could help stop, then other countries would be affected by it.

Thank you for listening to us about this issue. Human trafficking is very wrong and it's not human. Please consider donating money to the organization.

Sincerely,

59, 60, 61 and 62