regions of Togo
{{Short description|First-level administrative divisions of Togo}}
{{Infobox subdivision type
| name = Regions of Togo
| map = Togo-karte-politisch.png
| category = Unitary state
| territory = Togo
| start_date =
| current_number = 5
| number_date =
| population_range = {{ubl|Smallest: Centrale, 617,871|Largest: Maritime, 2,599,955}}
| area_range = {{ubl|Smallest: Maritime, {{Convert|6100|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sigfig=4}}|Largest: Plateaux, {{Convert|16975|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sigfig=4}}}}
| government = Regional government
| subdivision = Prefecture
}}
{{Politics of Togo}}
Regions ({{langx|fr|régions}}) are the first-level administrative divisions of Togo. They are subdivided into prefectures, which can be further broken down into communes. Each region has an elected regional government and a capital city that acts as its administrative seat. The regional governments have jurisdiction over some local affairs, but most powers are shared with the national government.
Overview
Togo has five regions subdivided into 39 prefectures, which are in turn subdivided into 117 communes.{{sfn|Government of Togo|2021|p=22}} The regions are, from north to south, Savanes, Kara, Centrale, Plateaux and Maritime. The Maritime Region, which contains the national capital Lomé, is the smallest by area but the largest by population, with over three-and-a-half million people.{{sfn|Government of Togo|2015}}{{sfn|Government of Togo|2023}} The Plateaux Region is the largest by area and accordingly has the most prefectures.{{sfn|Government of Togo|2015}}
The five stripes of the flag of Togo represent the five regions.{{sfn|Smith|2001}}
= List =
| class="wikitable sortable"
! Region ! Capital ! Area ! Population ! Prefectures |
| Centrale
| Sokodé | align="right" | 13,317 | align="right" | 795,529 | align="right" | 5 |
| Kara
| Kara | align="right" | 11,738 | align="right" | 985,512 | align="right" | 7 |
| Maritime
| Tsévié | align="right" | 6,100 | align="right" | 3,534,991 | align="right" | 8 |
| Plateaux
| Atakpamé | align="right" | 16,975 | align="right" | 1,635,946 | align="right" | 12 |
| Savanes
| Dapaong | align="right" | 8,470 | align="right" | 1,143,520 | align="right" | 7 |
Governance
Regional governments were given more autonomy over local policies following national decentralisation reforms in 2021.{{sfn|Government of Togo|2021|p=10}} They have sole jurisdiction over the construction and management of public spaces, such as bus stops, marketplaces, and urban green spaces; this category of power is officially known as "own abilities" ({{lang|fr|compétences propres}}). Responsibility is shared between the regional and national governments in regard to the construction and management of essential buildings and infrastructure, such as schools, nurseries, roads, and tolls; this is known as "shared abilities" ({{lang|fr|compétences partagées}}). Powers previously delegated to the national government that were transferred to the regional governments are known as "transferred abilities" ({{lang|fr|compétences transférées}}); these include the creation and management of public libraries and the hosting of cultural events.{{sfn|Government of Togo|2021|pp=16–17}}
Constitutional protections
The Constitution of Togo forbids discrimination on the basis of one's regional origin.{{sfn|Constitution of Togo|2019|loc=Title II, Articles 11 and 48}} Additionally, political parties may not associate with a particular region, as this would contradict the national government's constitutional mandate to "defend national unity" and "achieve regional and subregional integration".{{sfn|Constitution of Togo|2019|loc=Preamble; Title I, Article 7}}
Development
{{main|List of Togolese regions by Human Development Index}}
{{As of|2021}}, the northernmost Savanes Region had the lowest Human Development Index (HDI) with a score of 0.466, while the Centrale and Plateaux Regions had the highest with a tied score of 0.527 (Lomé was measured separately from the Maritime Region).{{sfn|Global Data Lab|2021}}
Clickable map
{{Regions of Togo Image Map}}
See also
- {{annotated link|ISO 3166-2:TG}}
References
= Citations =
{{Reflist}}
= Sources =
{{refbegin}}
- {{cite web |title=Constitution du Togo, 1992 |trans-title=Constitution of Togo, 1992 |url=https://mjp.univ-perp.fr/constit/tg2019.htm |website=Digithèque MJP |location=Lomé |publisher=Government of Togo |date=2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210607200759/https://mjp.univ-perp.fr/constit/tg2019.htm |url-status=live |archive-date=7 June 2021 |orig-date=14 October 1992 |language=fr |ref={{harvid|Constitution of Togo|2019}}}}
- {{cite web |title=Ma Commune et Moi: Guide des citoyennes et citoyens togolais |trans-title=My Commune and I: Guide for Togolese citizens |url=https://www.giz.de/en/downloads/giz2021-fr-guide-ma-commune-et-moi.pdf |date=2021 |publisher=Government of Togo, European Union, GIZ |access-date=13 August 2024 |language= fr |ref={{harvid|Government of Togo|2021}}}}
- {{cite web |last=Smith |first=Whitney |author-link=Whitney Smith |title=Flag of Togo |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/flag-of-Togo |website=Encyclopædia Britannica |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |date=16 February 2001 |language=en}}
- {{cite web |title=Sub-national HDI – Area Database |url=https://hdi.globaldatalab.org/areadata/shdi/ |website=Global Data Lab |language=en |access-date=13 August 2024 |ref={{harvid|Global Data Lab|2021}}}}
- {{cite web |title=Togo |url=http://www.geohive.com/cntry/togo.aspx |publisher=General Directorate of Statistics and National Accounting |via=GeoHive |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160701213415/http://www.geohive.com/cntry/togo.aspx |archive-date=1 July 2016 |ref={{harvid|Government of Togo|2015}}}}
- {{cite web |title=Togo: Administrative Division (Regions and Prefectures) |url=https://www.citypopulation.de/en/togo/admin/ |date=18 April 2023 |publisher=Government of Togo |via=City Population |access-date=13 August 2024 |ref={{harvid|Government of Togo|2023}}}}
{{refend}}
{{Regions of Togo}}
{{Articles on first-level administrative divisions of African countries}}
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