Civil Society Day, organized by the Cooperation and Cultural Action Service of the French Embassy in Togo, took place on June 16, 2026. The event brought together and highlighted numerous Togolese civil society organizations (CSOs), six of which are partners in the FAME-Togo project. The FAME project—which stands for “Feminism: Actions and Mobilization for an Inclusive Economy”—is funded by the French Development Agency (AFD) and supports CSOs in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean that work toward the economic empowerment of women and marginalized communities in 10 countries across these three continents. It is led by a unique consortium of five experienced organizations based in the regions where the project is implemented.
Together, they combine their diverse areas of expertise (climate, gender, economic empowerment, law and justice, etc.) to offer a flexible and easily accessible fund dedicated to initiatives that contribute to an ecological and inclusive transition, as well as to feminist CSOs and those supporting marginalized communities that are traditionally excluded from funding.
The products showcased today at the FAME booth were all derived from environmentally friendly agri-food and agroecological activities, although FAME’s support is not limited to these economic sectors. They come from small-scale production and processing sites established throughout Togo by the following CSOs:
- AIL [Support for Local Initiatives], which has benefited from the installation of a biodigester in the Kpalimé Plateaus region;
- Wep-Togo [Women Environmental Program], at a vegetable farm in Agounogbo equipped with solar-powered facilities and a drip irrigation system;
- Racine Féminine, which processes cassava into gari, tapioca, and other products in the Maritime Region, in the municipality of Tanou;
- Yokoumi, a civil society organization specializing in the processing of shea nuts into butter and soap in the Central-Sokodé region;
- The Akpeedze Group, which is working on recycling initiatives in the Greater Lomé area;
- Aklala Batik, which produces batik cloth in Kpalimé.
These activities were implemented in Togo by Togolese NGOs and women’s associations coordinated by Geres. Founded in 1976, Geres is an international development NGO working to improve living conditions and combat climate change and its impacts, primarily by driving the energy transition through five areas of action:
- Access to energy
- Support for regional climate and energy policies
- Energy demand management
- Renewable energy development
- Mobilizing climate solidarity stakeholders.
This Civil Society Day provided an opportunity for the FAME project officer in Togo to present GERES and the FAME project, as well as to join the GERES Country Representative in discussions and knowledge-sharing sessions with AFD partners in Togo in a collaborative and friendly atmosphere.
