Communication in Togo

French is Togo's official language, while Ewe, Kabiyè, Mina, Kotokoli, Peul and other local languages are used in everyday communication. Togo has no single nationwide communication or translation standard covering every setting, so the available language and support channel can depend on the institution, provider and location. Mobile communication is the main formal channel. YAS Togo and Moov Africa Togo provide mobile services. In the second quarter of 2025, mobile penetration was 95.70%, mobile-data penetration was 70.05% and mobile-money penetration was 52.93%. Fixed telephony reached 0.94% penetration and fixed data 1.60%. YAS Togo and Togo Telecom, GVA Togo, CAFE Informatique and TEOLIS provide fixed-line or internet services. Service quality differs by area and service type. In 2024 national quality results, conformity was measured at 74.43% for YAS Togo and 55.62% for Moov Africa Togo. In Grand Lomé the figures were 83.48% and 82.14%; inland they were 72.94% and 51.25%. Moov Africa Togo performed better for 3G and 4G in Grand Lomé, while YAS Togo performed better for voice services. Coverage and connection quality can still vary locally, so a provider should be compared at the places where the service will actually be used. Prices also require comparison. In 2024, 79% of YAS Togo customers and 65% of Moov Africa Togo customers assessed tariffs as high; 71% gave the same assessment for fixed internet providers. ARCEP, Togo's telecommunications regulator, requires tariff information to be comparable and tariffs to be fair and reasonable. Standard recharges remain active without an expiry date. Under ARCEP's 2026 rule, unused voice or data included in a package can be recovered within 10 days when the package validity is 10 days or less, or within 30 days when it is longer. The main account balance remains available while the SIM stays active. SIM purchases require systematic subscriber identification under Decree No. 2024-071/PR. A SIM should therefore be obtained through a regulated identification process rather than an unofficial seller. Sharing identity details or using an unofficially sold SIM creates privacy and fraud risks. Postal services cover ordinary and express letters, national and international parcels, postal mandates, electronic transfers, postal cheques and savings services. Six authorised providers operate in Togo: the public postal service SPT, DHL International Togo, Pako Agency or PakoFedEx, Top Chrono, Africa Express or UPS, and Bolloré Transport & Logistics. The country has about 150 postal agencies and service points, including 107 SPT points and 43 private points; 130 are urban and 20 are rural. Prices and delivery times depend on the provider and product. La Poste E-COLIS offers online registration, a relay address, repackaging, air transport, customs clearance and collection at a counter or delivery by hand. The maximum parcel weight is 20 kilograms. International shipping through this service is in practice limited to certified merchants in France and the Schengen Area, so the destination and sender status should be checked before payment. Digital public services are available through service-public.gouv.tg for procedures that have been digitised. The platform can provide citizen or company accounts, online applications, mobile payments through Flooz or TMoney and card payments, tracking, application history and document storage. Availability depends on the specific procedure. A service that has not been digitised still requires a physical service desk. ATD supports access to digital services through the web, mobile channels and accredited agents. Accessibility remains uneven. Togo's 2022–2026 universal-service strategy includes access for people with disabilities and people with specific social needs, as well as public access points. A single nationwide sign-language, Braille, screen-reader or relay service has not been reliably established across all providers and institutions. Ask the relevant provider or ARCEP for an alternative channel; a physical counter remains a practical fallback. For a service problem, contact the provider first and keep the complaint reference. If the issue remains unresolved, ARCEP accepts complaints and disputes through 8000, callcenter@arcep.tg, an online form, Messenger, WhatsApp or physical mail. Reported 2024 problems included outages, coverage gaps outside urban areas, mass SMS, unusual data consumption, mobile scams and SIM sales without identification. Commercial mass SMS can be refused through the provider or USSD, but the current code should be confirmed with the provider. Law No. 2019-014 governs personal-data protection. IPDCP, Togo's data-protection authority, accepts complaints, petitions and reports from affected people and supervises data processing. For cyber fraud or identity misuse, preserve messages, payment records, numbers and screenshots, then contact the provider and ARCEP; contact IPDCP when personal-data processing is involved and the criminal-investigation authorities when a crime may have occurred.