Arrived in Togo-capital Lomé after a 24-hour trip from Capetown, South Africa. I still owe you some stories from Namibia and South Africa and Ghana among them one about some Himba milionares in the Namibian desert, and the Ghana art of living. For now: still enjoying the heat and the end of the rainy season in the Togo-capital Lomé where elections were held yesterday. First impression two days ago: it feels like Sunday morning here all day. And the heat, always the hea. And the happines that seems to come with poverty. Togolese suffer, but they know where they are coming from: they once had a thriving market that was mainly built on the economic crisis of the countries around: in Burkina Faso, in Ivory Coast and in Ghana. Now that those countries are doing well (I came through Accra, capital of the neigbouring Ghana: what an activity, boiling atmosphere!) people do not need Togo anymore. It is the other way around. People go the neighboring countries for doing business. There is a road along the coast that connects them and makes one big zone of economic activity. Locals can travel without visa, althought borders will be closed until 15 October. One of the most important things for Togo is that foreign aid and foreign investors will come back to the country. Only phospate, uranium and some other raw products are not enough to build your economy. There are a lot of opportunities for the tourism industry here. Ok, i am dreaming there.
For now, everybody still seems to have some tension about the results that are expected later this week. Last night it was extremely quiet everywhere in town. As a local explained it to me: `…people are still afraid of what might happen.` More than hundred people were killed in the 2005 elections, that were won by the current president Faure Gnassingbe. An expected 40.000 people fled the country that year. These 2007 elections were monitored by EU and Ecowas observateurs. I noticed some of them are from countries like Brazil, Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast. Not all of them did not give me the impression of observing. I noticed some of them were enjoying very good and long lunches when they were supposed to be on their job. Mmmhhh? Today I will be travelling North in Togo. I will Keep you posted with a delay. Enjoy your day!