Sahel Reporter

The main building of the Grand Marché d’Anié, the economic heart of the Plateaux region, was completely engulfed in flames overnight, reduced to ashes while traders watched helplessly. Although no lives were lost, the material toll is devastating: hundreds of families have been ruined overnight, their goods, stocks and savings gone up in smoke.

Beyond the shock and the pain of the victims, this fire is not a simple misfortune. It is a glaring symptom of state negligence and a chronic lack of anticipation that defines governance in Lomé. Yet this moment can also be a turning point — a decisive test of whether the authorities will finally break with decades of inaction.

A decisive break with outdated infrastructure

How can it be that in 2026, a market of such strategic importance has no modern fire safety system, no working water points and no clear access for emergency services? The answer lies in the political record of the ruling power.

Since coming to power in 2005, Faure Gnassingbé’s regime has shown itself incapable of sustainably modernising Togo’s local infrastructure. More than sixty years after his father, the late Gnassingbé Eyadéma, took power, the current executive still operates on structures built in the last century, without substantial investment to adapt them to contemporary demographic and economic realities.

The ’emerging Togo’ slogan meets daily reality

While official speeches endlessly praise major projects, digitalisation and attracting foreign investment, conditions on the ground remain dramatically archaic:

• No prevention: Most of the country’s major markets — from Lomé to Kara, and now Anié — remain logistical tinderboxes, lacking compliant electrical standards and risk prevention plans.
• Under-equipped emergency services: Firefighters, often alerted late or hampered by a lack of suitable equipment in the regions, can only observe the extent of the damage.
• Living on past glory: The current power merely coasts on the security reputation and political foundations of the previous regime, without building a modern public policy to protect citizens and their property.

The urgent need to break with laissez-faire

After the historic fires that destroyed major markets in Lomé and Kara a few years ago, the Anié tragedy proves that no lessons have been learned. The Togolese state cannot limit itself to sending ministerial delegations to distribute food or promise symbolic aid after each disaster.

A government’s true responsibility is to protect its citizens before disasters strike. By leaving informal sector economic actors to work in vulnerable, outdated infrastructure, the regime reveals the limits of a worn-out political model, more concerned with its own perpetuation than with the safety and well-being of the Togolese people.

This fire could mark a turning point — but only if it triggers decisive action: enforcement of safety standards, investment in modern facilities and a genuine commitment to protecting the people who keep Togo’s economy alive.

By Anne Nkeng — Société et culture