A busy week starts in Togo. On Wednesday various events will be held to celebrate the 51th anniversary of independence (parade, showering flowers at the Independence Square, etc ...) and Saturday, the city will host several African heads of state for an extraordinary summit of the UEMOA (West African economic & monetary Union), preceded, the day before, by the meeting of Ministers of Economy and Finance of member countries of the organization.
The new Ivorian president Alassane Ouattara, is expected in Lomé on this occasion, his first official trip abroad since the arrest of Laurent Gbagbo.
At the time of President Gnassingbé Eyadema, April 27 was obscured in favor of 13 January, when he came to power in 1967.
But since his election in 2005, Faure Gnassingbé has decided to rehabilitate this day which marks the independence of Togo granted by France after four years of internal autonomy.