Togo Military - 2022

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Military and security forces

Togolese Armed Forces (Forces Armees Togolaise, FAT): Togolese Army (l'Armee de Terre), Togolese Navy (Forces Naval Togolaises), Togolese Air Force (Armee de l’Air), National Gendarmerie (Gendarmerie Nationale Togolaise or GNT) (2022)

note: the GNT falls under the Ministry of the Armed Forces but also reports to the Ministry of Security and Civil Protection on many matters involving law enforcement and internal security

Military expenditures

1.8% of GDP (2021 est.)

2% of GDP (2020 est.)

2.6% of GDP (2019 est.) (approximately $190 million)

1.9% of GDP (2018 est.) (approximately $140 million)

1.9% of GDP (2017 est.) (approximately $130 million)

Military and security service personnel strengths

approximately 11,000 personnel (6,500 Army; 500 Air and Navy; 3,000 Gendarmerie) (2022)

note: in January 2022, the Togolese Government announced its intent to boost the size of the FAT to more than 20,000 by 2025

Military equipment inventories and acquisitions

the FAT has a small, mixed inventory of mostly older equipment from a variety of countries, including Brazil, China, France, Germany, Russia/former Soviet Union, South Africa, the UK, and the US (2022)

Military service age and obligation

18 years of age for military service; 2-year service obligation; no conscription; women have been able to serve since 2007 (2022)

Military deployments

730 (plus about 300 police) Mali (MINUSMA) (May 2022)

Military - note

the first Togolese Army unit was created in 1963, while the Air Force was established in 1964; the Navy was not established until 1976; since its creation, the Togolese military has a history of interfering in the country’s politics with assassinations, coups, influence, and a large military crackdown in 2005 that killed hundreds; over the past decade, it has made some efforts to reform and professionalize, as well as increase its role in UN peacekeeping activities; Togolese police have also been deployed on peacekeeping operations, and Togo maintains a regional peacekeeping training center for military and police in Lome; the Navy and Air Force has increased focus on combating piracy and smuggling in the Gulf of Guinea

in June 2022, the Togolese Government declared a state of emergency in its northern border region due to the threat from Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM), a coalition of al-Qa'ida-affiliated militant groups based in Mali that also operates in neighboring Burkina Faso; the declaration followed an attack on a Togolese military post in May that killed 8 soldiers and a Togolese military operation launched the same month to boost border security and prevent terrorist infiltrations (2022)

Maritime threats

the International Maritime Bureau reports the territorial and offshore waters in the Niger Delta and Gulf of Guinea remain a very high risk for piracy and armed robbery of ships; in 2021, there were 34 reported incidents of piracy and armed robbery at sea in the Gulf of Guinea region; although a significant decrease from the total number of 81 incidents in 2020, it included the one hijacking and three of five ships fired upon worldwide; while boarding and attempted boarding to steal valuables from ships and crews are the most common types of incidents, almost a third of all incidents involve a hijacking and/or kidnapping; in 2021, 57 crew members were kidnapped in seven separate incidents in the Gulf of Guinea, representing 100% of kidnappings worldwide; Nigerian pirates in particular are well armed and very aggressive, operating as far as 200 nm offshore; the Maritime Administration of the US Department of Transportation has issued a Maritime Advisory (2022-001 - Gulf of Guinea-Piracy/Armed Robbery/Kidnapping for Ransom) effective 4 January 2022, which states in part, "Piracy, armed robbery, and kidnapping for ransom continue to serve as significant threats to US-flagged vessels transiting or operating in the Gulf of Guinea"

NOTE: The information regarding Togo on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Togo 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Togo 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.