On 6 March, Togolese authorities announced the first COVID-19 case, a 42-year-old Togolese woman who travelled between Germany, France, Turkey, and Benin before returning to Togo. On this date, it was reported that she was being treated in isolation and her condition was stable. On 20 March, nine more cases were confirmed in Togo. On this day, the first case recovered, as indicated by the Ministry of Health. On 21 March, seven more cases were confirmed. In an attempt to control the spread of the virus in Togo, all borders to the country were closed. The cities of Lomé, Tsévié, Kpalimé, and Sokodé were quarantined starting on 20 March for two weeks. On 27 March, the first death occurred. By the end of March there had been 34 confirmed cases, of which 1 patient had died and 10 had recovered, leaving 23 active cases. During April there were 82 new cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 116. The death toll rose to 9 and the number of recovered patients increased to 65, leaving 42 active cases at the end of the month. In May there were 326 new cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 442. Four more patients died, raising the total death toll to 13, and the number of recovered patients grew to 211, leaving 218 active cases at the end of May. In June there were 208 new cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 643. The death toll increased by one person to 14, while the number of recovered patients rose by 184 to 395, leaving 234 active cases at the end of the month. During July there were 284 new cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 927. Four more died, raising the death toll to 18. The number of recovered patients increased to 628, leaving 281 active cases at the end of the month.
Response
After an extraordinary council of ministers on 16 March, the government announced they would establish an XOF 2 billion fund to fight the pandemic. They also established the following measures: suspending flights from Italy, France, Germany, and Spain; canceling all international events for three weeks; requiring people who were recently in a high-risk country to self-isolate; closing their borders; and prohibiting events with more than 100 people effective 19 March. In accordance with the ban on large gatherings, on 18 March, the Togolese Football Federation suspended competitions. Other events were canceled too, including the FILBLEU literature festival.
