Togo

The Republic of Togo is located in west Africa. Togolese society is multiethnic, with little tension and some national cultural identification. Traditional rural kinship networks continue to dominate society, although an urban elite based on education, occupation, and Western influence has emerged. Religious affiliation is another key component of social identity. Most Togolese work in the informal economy and do not have access to modern mass and social media.

Togo consists of six distinct geographic regions and over 30 different ethnic groups, which have spread throughout the country and do intermarry. There is also a sizable non-African population, including Europeans and Syrian-Lebanese. There is a national culture and identity, although it is sometimes subverted by a north-south political and social divide and an emphasis on the Kabye ethnic identity. There have been few ethnic tensions, but political conflict in the early 1990s caused social upheaval and mass dislocations.

Most of the population live in rural villages. Traditional kinship affiliations and social systems continue to play a key role in Togolese society. Most ethnic groups are patrilineal. These kin networks carry obligations of social support and education and are reinforced through gatherings at ceremonies such as weddings and funerals. Even kin members who migrate to urban centers for employment or educational opportunities maintain strong ties with their families and home villages. Polygyny has decreased but still exists unofficially. Communal systems of land ownership still exist along with private ownership. Village elders are esteemed and play a key role in the socialization of the young and settlement of conflicts.

The dominant religions include Islam, Christianity (notably Roman Catholicism), and indigenous religions such as Vodoun, which many believe began in the area that became Togo. Religious officials and traditional healers hold key social positions, especially in the wake of the growing human immunodeficiency virus and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) epidemic. Coming-of-age ceremonies and initiation rituals remain common, although the government has banned the practice of female genital mutilation. Funerals are often extravagant social occasions that can last for weeks or months and force a family into debt. Many males and females are initiated into west African secret societies, where they gain secret knowledge and help maintain social norms and punish nonconformists.

Social hierarchies exist in both traditional and modern Togolese society. Traditional elites consisted of kings, key chiefs, and Vodoun priests, while modern elites consist of businessmen, politicians, and educated intellectuals. Social status symbols include educational attainments, tin-roofed houses, Western-style dress, and material possessions. Women face social and other forms of discrimination and often socialize separately from men, although there are some socially prominent women in business and politics. Social problems include dislocation, unemployment, low wages, poverty, public health crises such as HIV/AIDS, and increased crime rates. There are few government social welfare programs, and most nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) left Togo in the early 1990s due to the outbreak of political conflict, leaving most of the population to rely on traditional social welfare networks and voluntary service organizations.

Urban areas provide most economic opportunity and thus attract many migrants from within and outside [Page 873]the country. Those people with access to higher education or key social connections hold most professional positions in the formal economy. Togo has a large informal economy based on kinship and other established social networks. Most villages and towns feature trading networks, shops, and open-air markets, including the Assigamé (Grand Marché) in the capital city of Lomé. The informal economy also supports widespread child- and forced-labor networks. The government owns and controls the primary radio and television stations. Telephones, cellular telephones, and computers are mostly available to wealthy urban elites. Although most of the Togolese population lacks Internet access, its per capita access rates are among the highest in west Africa.

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