Togo extends state of emergency for 1 year amid COVID outbreak

By Aurore Bonny

DOUALA, Cameroon (AA) - Togo's National Assembly voted Tuesday to extend the government's empowerment period and state of health emergency for a period of one year as the country continues to grapple with an outbreak of COVID-19.

"In accordance with the provisions of the fundamental law, the Togolese government has requested and obtained today an authorization to extend the state of health emergency as well as the deadline for the presentation of texts adopted in this framework, Kanka-Malik Natchaba, the minister secretary-general of the government, said on Twitter.

The decision will take effect from Sept. 16 for 12 months, the parliament announced.

Local authorities said this period will be marked by the maintenance of increased vigilance and the possibility for the government to have legal means to intervene in the field of law to adapt the response according to the evolution of the coronavirus pandemic.

This extension comes "in a context marked by the outbreak of cases of coronavirus contamination, particularly the Delta variant, which is more virulent and more contagious," according to the Ministry of Communication.

It is "the expression of democracy in the service of the protection of the people and the confidence of the Togolese parliament in the Executive in the management of this crisis," it added.

"From a technical point of view," said Natchaba, this extension allows the government to "have all the legal tools to take the necessary measures in the face of a pandemic “marked by uncertainty.”

It also allows the West African country to "consolidate its achievements and continue its march towards progress," he added.

Nearly 24,000 confirmed cases as well as 208 deaths have been recorded since the beginning of the pandemic in Togo, representing around 30.96 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, according to official figures.

Since March 10, Togo has launched a vaccination campaign and has received several hundred thousand vaccines from its international partners.

"The demand for the vaccine against COVID-19 by the population is increasingly urgent," according to the Ministry of Health.

On Monday, it recorded more than 19,000 vaccinations, noting a "strong, record attendance at COVID-19 vaccination sites" in the capital Lome and saying that "adherence" is real in the country.