On behalf of the Security Council’s Counter-Terrorism Committee, the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) conducted a follow-up assessment visit to the Republic of Togo from 23 to 27 March 2026.
The visiting delegation was led by Assistant Secretary-General Natalia Gherman, Executive Director of CTED and comprised CTED experts as well as experts from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the International Organization for Migration, the International Criminal Police Organization, the United Nations’s Development Program, the Peacebuilding and Peace Support Office, the Intergovernmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA), the Economic Community of West African States and the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel.
During the visit, the Executive Director held bilateral meetings with high-level officials from key offices working on counter-terrorism, including the Minister of Security, the Minister of Territorial Administration, Local Governance, and Customary Affairs, the Minister of Justice and Human Rights, the Minister of Solidarity, Gender, Family, and Child Protection and the Coordinator of the Emergency Program for Strengthening Community Resilience and Security. The Executive Director also had the opportunity to engage with the United Nations Resident Coordinator and Heads of United Nations agencies working in Togo as well as the diplomatic community.
At the technical level, the expert delegation engaged with a number of officials from various ministries and departments, including the National Police, the Gendarmerie, the Ministry of Justice and human rights, the Penitentiary administration, the National Intelligence Coordination, the Financial Intelligence Unit, the Inter-ministerial Committee for the Prevention and Fight Against Violent Extremism, the High Authority for Audiovisual and Communication, the National Intelligence Agency, the Military Intelligence Directorate, the Emergency Program for Strengthening Community Resilience and Security, the Central Office for the Suppression of Illicit Drug Trafficking and Money Laundering, the National Commission for Combating the Illicit Proliferation, Circulation, and Trafficking of Small Arms and Light Weapons, the military justice, the General Directorate of National Documentation and the General Staff of the Togolese Armed Forces.
The delegation also visited the Autonomous Port of Lomé, the Lomé Gnassingbé Eyadéma International Airport, the National Laboratory of the Technical and Forensic Division of the National Police, the Inter-ministerial Committee for the Prevention and Fight Against Violent Extremism, the Togo Police Information Center, the Criminal Analysis Unit, and the Hillacondji–Sanvee Condji border post with Benin. The human rights and gender dimensions of Togo’s counter-terrorism measures were also discussed. The delegation held separate meetings with the representatives from the National Human Rights Commission, from the Togolese Bar Association as well as with representatives of civil society.
The follow-up visit enabled the delegation to assess progress made by Togo in implementing the recommendations from the Counter-Terrorism Committee’s 2019 visit as well as measures taken to implement relevant Security Council resolutions. The visiting delegation commended Togo for the significant progress made since the 2019 Counter-Terrorism Committee visit, implementing a comprehensive and holistic strategy addressing both conditions conducive to terrorism and enhancing security at its borders. The delegation further commended Togo for its continued cooperation and for facilitating a constructive, in-depth dialogue between the visiting experts and their counterparts in Togo.
Country visits are one of the Counter-Terrorism Committee’s key channels to engage in constructive dialogue with Member States with a view to achieving effective implementation of the relevant counter-terrorism resolutions.