Togo

The West African nation of Togo achieved sovereignty in 1960, when 14 French-African colonies ceded from France and became independent nations. Present-day Togo is bordered by Benin to the east, Ghana to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean, the Bight of Benin, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south. With a population of 6.6 million people, the country's size is smaller than West Virginia and its long, narrow shape enables its residents to experience six different ecological systems within the nation's borders. Ewe and Mina are spoken in the south, Dagomba and Kabiye are spoken in the north, and French is the official language spoken in schools, trade, and government. The nation consists mostly of Ewe, Fon, Mina, and Kabre peoples, with small pockets of Syrian-Lebanese and Europeans. French influences are seen in fashion, marketing ads, and in the readily available baguettes.

Togo is composed religiously of 20% Muslims, 29% Christians, and 51% indigenous practitioners. The capital, Lomé, is a cosmopolitan city bordering Ghana and is well-known for its Muslim [Page 1289]traders, Christian vendors, and smugglers from countries all across West Africa. Many Togolese Christians and Muslims simultaneously practice or combine their religious beliefs with local cultural practices, though publicly their religious leaders will often extol the exclusive adoption of one tradition. African Initiated Churches (AICs) are common, as they use charismatic religious leaders, who often combine Christian rites and biblical passages with locally embraced music, styles of service, and ceremony. Mosques are in every major city, and the call to prayer is heard over amplified intercoms.

Togolese Vodou (alternatively called Vodu, Vodun, Voodoo), has a structured pantheon that consists of numerous spirits and divinities that interrelate with human beings in daily practices, community ceremonies, rites of passage, vocational selection, marital relationships, and most other scenarios. Spirits (vodu) can forge relationships with humans based on a person's star, or destiny, which is brought with an infant at birth. Each vodu generally has associative colors, fabrics, and beads that identify a practitioner of the spirit to the community, as well as proverbs, oral histories, prohibitions, and special days devoted to the particular vodu. Vodu can be found residing in natural sources, such as water, mountains, and lightning, or at a crossroads or can be connected with man-made substances such as forged iron. Ancestors, who are seen as an extension of the living world, are also used to work on behest of religious practitioners seeking guidance, protection, or aid from one of the many spirits who work on a human's behalf.

Politically, the nation has struggled under General Eyadéma's presidency and military dictatorship, which lasted from 1967 to 2005, shortly followed by his son Faure Gnassingbé's succession. Collectively, this has led to political instability, social turmoil, acts of violence, international financial sanctions, refugee displacement, and suppression of the press. Since 2007, Togo has held what are internationally deemed as (mostly) fair and free elections, making Togo safer and more accessible as a democratic nation.