DƆNÙESÈ Data Center / Women’s Rights Laws by Country / Togo

West Africa · Country law profile

Togo: women’s rights and civic space laws

Women leaders at an RFLD convening. RFLD member organisations use these laws in their advocacy. Photo: RFLD, taken with the consent of participants.

At a glance

Capital	Lomé

Key indicators

21.6% (24 of 111)Women in National Assembly (2026)

Regional and international treaties

Treaty	Status	Reservations or notes
Maputo Protocol	signed 30/12/2003; ratified 12/10/2005; deposited 26/10/2005
CEDAW	accession 26/09/1983
CEDAW Optional Protocol	not a party
African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child	signed 27/02/1992; ratified 05/05/1998; deposited 18/05/1998
ICCPR	accession 24/05/1984
Kampala Convention	signed 24/12/2009; ratified 08/07/2011; deposited 09/08/2011
AU Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection (Malabo)	signed 02/04/2019; ratified 30/09/2021; deposited 19/10/2021
ILO C190 Violence and Harassment Convention	not ratified

National laws

Rape and sexual offences

Loi n° 2015-010 du 24 novembre 2015 portant nouveau Code pénal

Criminalises rape, and since 2015 marital rape has been an offence carrying the same penalties as rape.

Source: ohchr.org

Sexual harassment

Loi n° 2007-005 du 10 janvier 2007 sur la santé de la reproduction, article 11

Guarantees every person protection against sexual harassment as part of the right to freedom and safety in reproductive health. It also guarantees protection against rape and forced marriage.

Source: scorecard.prb.org

Female genital mutilation

Loi n° 2015-010 du 24 novembre 2015 portant nouveau Code pénal, articles 217 à 222

Punishes female genital mutilation. The offence was first created by Loi n° 98-016 of 17 November 1998, whose provisions were taken into the 2015 Penal Code.

Source: upr-info.org

Child marriage and age of marriage

Loi n° 2007-017 du 6 juillet 2007 portant Code de l’enfant, article 267

Prohibits child marriage and sets the age of marriage at 18.

Gaps: Civil society reports that other provisions on the marriage of minors are confusing.

Source: upr-info.org

Family and personal status

Loi n° 2012-014 du 6 juillet 2012 portant Code des personnes et de la famille, modifiée par la loi n° 2014-019 du 17 novembre 2014

Makes monogamy the rule and allows polygamy only as an option chosen by the spouses (article 42).

Gaps: The code imposes a 300-day waiting period before a woman can remarry, which the government said in 2021 was under review.

Source: ohchr.org

Land and property

Loi n° 2018-005 du 14 juin 2018 portant Code foncier et domanial

Guarantees women equal access to land ownership (articles 8, 13, 14 and 483).

Source: togoactualite.com

Abortion and sexual and reproductive health

Loi n° 2007-005 du 10 janvier 2007 sur la santé de la reproduction, article 42

Allows termination of pregnancy where continuing it endangers the woman’s life and health, or at her request where the pregnancy results from rape or incest. A serious condition of the fetus is a further ground.

Source: scorecard.prb.org

Labour and maternity

Loi n° 2021-012 du 18 juin 2021 portant Code du travail

Togo’s current Labour Code, adopted in June 2021, governs employment relations.

Source: nyulawglobal.org

Social protection

Loi n° 2011-006 du 21 février 2011 portant Code de sécurité sociale

Sets the social security framework for workers.

Source: nyulawglobal.org

Social protection

Loi n° 2021-022 du 18 octobre 2021 instituant l’assurance maladie universelle

Creates universal health insurance (AMU).

Source: nyulawglobal.org

Older persons

Loi n° 91-11 du 23 mai 1991 portant régime des pensions civiles et militaires

Governs retirement pensions for civil servants and military personnel.

Source: upr-info.org

Nationality

Ordonnance n° 78-34 du 7 septembre 1978 portant Code de la nationalité, modifiée par l’ordonnance n° 80-27 du 8 octobre 1980

Governs the acquisition and transmission of Togolese nationality.

Source: nyulawglobal.org

Access to justice and legal aid

Loi du 24 mai 2013 relative à l’aide juridictionnelle

Establishes the legal aid scheme (aide juridictionnelle) for people seeking access to the courts.

Source: togoactualite.com

Online violence and cybercrime

Loi n° 2018-026 du 7 décembre 2018 sur la cybersécurité et la lutte contre la cybercriminalité

Sets the national framework for cybersecurity and defines cybercrime offences, under the authority of the security ministry working with the digital economy ministry.

Source: labase-lextenso.fr

Data protection

Loi n° 2019-014 du 29 octobre 2019 relative à la protection des données à caractère personnel

Protects personal data and is enforced by the Instance de protection des données à caractère personnel (IPDCP), organised by Decree n° 2020-111/PR.

Source: ipdcp.tg

Women and girls with disabilities

Loi n° 2004-005 relative à la protection sociale des personnes handicapées

Defines persons with disabilities and provides for their social protection, including a right to education (article 8).

Source: upr-info.org

Human rights defenders

Loi n° 2011-010 du 16 mai 2011 fixant les conditions d’exercice de la liberté de réunion et de manifestation pacifiques publiques, modifiée en 2019

Regulates public meetings and peaceful demonstrations.

Gaps: The government acknowledged before the UN Human Rights Committee in 2021 that restrictions added in 2019 were not fully in line with the Covenant.

Source: ohchr.org

Human rights defenders

Associations regime based on the French law of 1 July 1901

Associations are registered under a regime based on the French 1901 law and the Constitution, and more than 15,000 associations were registered in 2021.

Source: ohchr.org

Vulnerable Groups

Loi n° 2015-010 du 24 novembre 2015 portant nouveau Code pénal, articles 392 et 393

Criminalises ‘acts against nature’, which include sexual relations between persons of the same sex.

Source: upr-info.org

Being verified. RFLD is checking the laws on the following topics against official texts and will add them to this page: gender-based and domestic violence, harmful practices, inheritance and succession, girls’ education, political participation and quotas, trafficking. Corrections and documents are welcome at programs@rflgd.org.

African Union treaties

Status of 29 African Union treaties as recorded in the official AU status lists published by the African Union Commission. The date of each list is shown: a ratification deposited after that date may not appear yet. 10 of the 13 human rights and governance treaties below are ratified.

AU treaty	Status	AU list dated
Maputo Protocol (rights of women)	Ratified 12/10/2005	19/09/2023
African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights	Ratified 05/11/1982	15/06/2017
African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child	Ratified 05/05/1998	14/02/2023
Protocol establishing the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights	Ratified 23/06/2003	14/02/2023
African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance	Ratified 24/01/2012	08/07/2024
AU Convention on Ending Violence against Women and Girls	Not signed	22/05/2026
Protocol on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities	Signed 2019, not ratified	22/05/2026
Protocol on the Rights of Older Persons	Ratified 23/06/2021	22/05/2026
Protocol on Social Protection and Social Security	Not signed	22/05/2026
African Youth Charter	Ratified 28/12/2008	19/09/2023
OAU Refugee Convention	Ratified 10/04/1970	16/05/2019
AU Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption	Ratified 14/09/2009	14/02/2023
AU Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection (Malabo)	Ratified 30/09/2021	02/02/2026

Other AU treaties (16)

AU treaty	Status	AU list dated
Protocol on Free Movement of Persons	Signed 2018, not ratified	08/08/2023
Protocol on the Statute of the African Court of Justice and Human Rights	Signed 2009, not ratified	18/06/2020
Protocol on Amendments to the Statute of the African Court of Justice and Human Rights (Malabo Protocol)	Signed 2019, not ratified	22/05/2026
Protocol of the Court of Justice of the African Union	Signed 2003, not ratified	18/06/2020
Protocol on the Peace and Security Council	Ratified 23/02/2004	27/04/2022
Protocol to the OAU Convention on Terrorism	Ratified 06/01/2017	15/06/2017
OAU Convention on Mercenarism	Ratified 30/03/1987	15/06/2017
Charter on Decentralisation, Local Governance and Local Development	Signed 2019, not ratified	25/03/2022
Charter on Public Service and Administration	Signed 2011, not ratified	08/07/2024
African Charter on Statistics	Ratified 11/06/2014	19/09/2023
Statute of the Pan African Intellectual Property Organization	Not signed	19/09/2023
African Road Safety Charter	Ratified 30/06/2021	22/05/2026
Revised African Maritime Transport Charter	Ratified 26/06/2012	25/03/2022
Phyto-sanitary Convention for Africa	Ratified 24/10/1979	15/06/2017
Convention establishing the African Centre for Fertilizer Development	Signed 2003, not ratified	19/09/2023
Constitution of the Association of African Trade Promotion Organizations	Ratified 02/12/1977	16/05/2019

Sources (13)

Other countries in West Africa

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Information verified as of October 2026. This page is for information and advocacy and is not legal advice. Laws change: check the official text before relying on it. Part of the DƆNÙESÈ Data Center of the Women Leaders Network for Development (RFLD). See also the Maputo Protocol Hub and the Maputo Barometer.

For funders and partnersPour les bailleurs et les partenaires

Fund the women who defend rights in Africa, nowFinancez maintenant les femmes qui défendent les droits en Afrique

Aid to women’s organisations is falling. RFLD moves funding fast to women-led organisations and defenders, in French and English, through a network of 1,143 member organisations in more than 35 African countries.L’aide aux organisations de femmes recule. Le RFLD achemine vite les financements vers les organisations de femmes et les défenseures, en français et en anglais, grâce à un réseau de 1 143 organisations membres dans plus de 35 pays africains.

RFLD currently serves as Co-Chair of the SEA-T Programme Advisory Council, mandated to ensure the programme’s direction, priorities, and resources are meaningfully aligned with the visions of African women-led civil society. The SEA-T Programme is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.Le RFLD assure actuellement la coprésidence du Conseil consultatif du programme SEA-T, chargé de veiller à ce que l’orientation, les priorités et les ressources du programme soient réellement alignées sur les visions de la société civile africaine portée par les femmes. Le programme SEA-T est financé par le ministère fédéral allemand de la Coopération économique et du Développement (BMZ) et mis en œuvre par la Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. See the partnershipVoir le partenariat

1,143member organisationsorganisations membres
35+African countriespays africains
N°553ACHPR observer statusstatut d’observateur CADHP
CandidSeal of Transparency 2025Sceau de transparence 2025

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