Togo’s Faure Gnassingbé Meets Xi Jinping on 13 October

TOGO · DIPLOMACY

Faure Gnassingbé, who heads Togo’s government as President of the Council, met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Tuesday, 13 October 2026. Togo’s official news portal and China’s Xinhua news agency reported the meeting, midway through an eight-day visit on farm technology, ports and investment.

For US readers, the trip shows China courting a small West African state whose deep-water port in Lomé anchors its growth plans. Togo’s trade with China reached US$5.4 billion in 2025, up about 55%, according to the portal and the business news site Togo First.

Faure Gnassingbé Meets Xi Jinping in Beijing

Xi Jinping received Faure Gnassingbé in Beijing on Tuesday, according to République Togolaise, Togo’s official news portal. The site called China one of Togo’s leading trading partners, citing the 2025 figure of US$5.4 billion.

China’s state news agency Xinhua confirmed in a short French-language dispatch that Xi met Gnassingbé in Beijing on Tuesday. It gave no details of the talks.

The visit runs from 9 to 16 October at the invitation of Premier Li Qiang, the head of China’s government. China’s foreign ministry said Gnassingbé would also hold talks with Li and meet Zhao Leji, who heads the standing committee of China’s parliament.

This is his seventh official trip to China, both Togo’s portal and China’s foreign ministry noted. Before he left, the portal said the aim was to give new impetus to ties raised to a comprehensive strategic partnership in September 2024.

Gnassingbé has held the post of President of the Council of Ministers, Togo’s top executive office under a 2024 constitution, since May 2025. Under that system the presidency of the republic is largely ceremonial, as this background on Togo’s politics explains.

What He Saw in a Chinese Smart Farming Park

The first stop was a smart-agriculture demonstration park in Yangling, in Shaanxi province, about 80 km (50 miles) from Xi’an. The site uses artificial intelligence, robotics and digital tools to raise yields and make farming more efficient, the official portal reported.

The park also hosts Northwest A&F University, a Chinese university of agriculture and forestry. According to the Togolese presidency, such innovations fit the government’s policy of modernising agriculture, which it calls a priority.

Togo First, a Togolese business news site, quoted Faure Gnassingbé on what new farm technology must deliver. “An innovation takes on its full value when it offers a response suited to producers’ needs and takes account of their means and daily realities.”

Togo First wrote that Lomé is looking for technology to help transform its farming. The outlet called agriculture a priority sector of the national economy.

A Memorandum With Togo’s Kara Region

The Shaanxi stop ended with a memorandum of understanding between the Chinese province and Togo’s Kara region, in the north of the country. Shaanxi governor Zhao Gang reaffirmed his wish for closer economic ties with Togolese regions in farming, infrastructure, business, science, education and culture.

Togo First reported that the memorandum covers decentralised cooperation in agriculture, energy, environmental protection and natural resource management. The projects, the funding and the way they will be carried out still have to be specified, the outlet noted.

From Xiamen’s Port to Lomé’s Ambitions

On Sunday, 11 October, Faure Gnassingbé stopped in Xiamen, a port city in Fujian province. He visited the museum of its special economic zone and an oceanography institute, the official portal reported.

The official portal recalled that Xiamen became one of China’s first special economic zones in October 1980. It said that model of “a port, a free zone, factories” speaks to Lomé.

The Togolese capital, the site noted, is betting on its own deep-water port and on the Adétikopé Industrial Platform.

Before the trip, the official portal said Faure Gnassingbé would also meet Chinese investors. Talks were to cover public-private partnerships for the priorities of Togo’s 2026–2031 government roadmap and its long-term Vision 2040 plan.

What It Means for US Readers

Washington has stepped back from one farm-linked programme in Togo. The Millennium Challenge Corporation, a US government aid agency, terminated its Togo threshold programme on 18 December 2025, after a board vote in August 2025.

That programme, signed in February 2019, included a US$8 million land reform project to accelerate agricultural productivity, beside a US$20.5 million telecoms project. In Shaanxi, by contrast, Chinese officials showcased farm technology and signed a memorandum with Togo’s Kara region.

An editorial on the official portal said Togo “chooses its partners according to its needs, not the rivalries of others.” It appeared ahead of a Russia–Africa summit in Moscow on 28 and 29 October.

For American shippers and investors, the Port of Lomé is the asset to watch, and the official portal holds up Xiamen as an example. Togo is also attending the IMF and World Bank meetings in Bangkok, two lenders in which Washington is the largest shareholder.

What Is Not Known

The first reports from Lomé and Beijing on the Faure Gnassingbé meeting with Xi Jinping gave no details of what was discussed or signed. Details of the talks with Premier Li Qiang and of any investment deals have not been published.

The Kara memorandum has no published budget or project list. How the trip will shape Togo’s other partnerships is also unclear, though Lomé says it is open to new partners without dropping old ones.

More: Africa news in English, every day from The Rio Times.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Faure Gnassingbé?

Faure Gnassingbé is Togo’s President of the Council of Ministers, the country’s top executive post under a 2024 constitution. He took that office in May 2025, and the current China visit is his seventh official trip there.

What did Faure Gnassingbé see in China?

In Yangling, Shaanxi province, he toured a smart-agriculture park that uses artificial intelligence, robotics and digital tools to raise yields. In Xiamen, he visited a special economic zone museum and an oceanography institute.

What did Togo sign in China?

Togo’s Kara region signed a memorandum of understanding with Shaanxi province on cooperation in agriculture, energy, the environment and natural resources. Its projects and funding have not been published.

How much do Togo and China trade?

Trade between the two countries reached US$5.4 billion in 2025, up about 55%, according to Togo’s official news portal and the business site Togo First. China is also Togo’s main source of imports, according to Togo First and China’s foreign ministry.

Why does the visit matter to Americans?

Togo’s growth plans centre on the Port of Lomé, which the official portal compares with China’s port city of Xiamen. The US Millennium Challenge Corporation, meanwhile, ended its Togo programme, including a farm-linked land project, in December 2025.

Sources: République Togolaise (Togo’s official news portal): Xi Jinping reçoit Faure Gnassingbé, 13 October 2026; Xinhua (Chinese state news agency, French service): Xi Jinping rencontre le président du Conseil des ministres du Togo, 13 October 2026; Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China: Spokesperson Mao Ning’s regular press conference, 8 October 2026; Togo First: Togo-Chine, Faure Gnassingbé à Pékin pour aligner la coopération sur la Vision 2040, 8 October 2026; République Togolaise: Faure Gnassingbé en Chine, 8 October 2026; République Togolaise: IA, robotique, numérique, 10 October 2026; Togo First, 12 October 2026; République Togolaise: Xiamen, vitrine de l’ouverture chinoise, 11 October 2026; République Togolaise: Faure Gnassingbé est arrivé à Xi’an, 9 October 2026; République Togolaise: Le Togo, pays de tous les dialogues, 12 October 2026; Millennium Challenge Corporation: Togo Threshold Program, accessed 13 October 2026.

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