Empowering Togolese Women: Family Law Reforms and the Road to True Gender Equality

Togo’s 2012 and 2014 family law reforms marked a major step toward gender equality, granting women rights to work, choose residence, and head households. Despite legal progress, deep-rooted cultural norms and gaps in implementation still limit their full impact.

Togo has seen a quiet but powerful legal revolution in recent years, dramatically reshaping women’s rights through family law reform. With key support from the World Bank’s Women, Business and the Law (WBL) initiative, and backing from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, Togo amended its Persons and Family Code between 2012 and 2014 to eliminate longstanding discriminatory provisions. These amendments finally gave women the legal right to choose where to live, to pursue employment without needing a husband's permission, and to be recognized as heads of households, a status that had historically been reserved for men. Behind this transformation were decades of activism by civil society organizations such as WiLDAF-Togo and GF2D, which built coalitions across parliament, legal associations, and the international donor community. Their efforts were underpinned by detailed sociological studies and grassroots consultations that exposed the outdated and unjust nature of Togo’s legal framework and helped galvanize political action.

From Constitution to Action: Bridging the Equality Gap

Although Togo’s 1992 Constitution guarantees legal equality for all citizens, in practice, women were systematically denied basic rights under the law for decades. The original 1980 Persons and Family Code embedded patriarchal norms giving husbands the final say over the family’s residence, requiring their permission for a wife to work, and naming them sole heads of household. Early calls for reform began in the late 1980s, with women’s rights organizations focusing on discriminatory inheritance practices that left widows and daughters landless under customary law. This narrow campaign expanded into a broader movement to overhaul all gender-biased provisions in family legislation.

However, legal reform efforts stalled for years due to weak political will and Togo’s international isolation. It wasn’t until 2005, with the rise of President Faure Gnassingbé and his promise to rebuild diplomatic and development ties, that the tide began to turn. As Togo re-engaged with institutions like the World Bank and African Development Bank, pressure mounted to align national laws with global gender equality standards, including those enshrined in CEDAW and the Maputo Protocol. The Ministry of Social Action, Women, and Literacy emerged as a vital government partner, shaping the content of reforms and coordinating implementation strategies.

What Changed: A Snapshot of Legal Transformation

The two major reforms passed in 2012 and 2014 marked a legal turning point. The 2012 amendment scrapped provisions that required a woman to live where her husband dictated and prohibited her from working without his approval. The law now allows spouses to jointly choose the family residence and to freely pursue professions unless challenged in court. The 2014 amendment tackled one of the most symbolic inequalities by eliminating the husband’s automatic status as head of the household. Both spouses now share financial and moral responsibility for the family.

These legal reforms had ripple effects across Togo’s economy and politics. Women’s access to financial services increased sharply from 15.1% to 37.6% between 2014 and 2017, while the share of female entrepreneurs rose from 22% to 32% over six years. Political representation also saw gains: the number of women in the National Assembly nearly doubled between 2007 and 2018. These shifts point to the power of legislative change to influence broader social and economic inclusion.

Law Versus Reality: Challenges in Implementation

Despite these advances, the gap between legal rights and daily life remains significant. Awareness of the reforms is uneven, particularly in rural areas where illiteracy is high and French, the language of the law, is not widely spoken. Almost half of Togolese women cannot read, rendering printed legal materials ineffective. Although some public officials received training on the new provisions, dissemination efforts remain underfunded and inconsistent. Civil society organizations like GF2D and the Association of Women Lawyers of Togo have stepped in with workshops, flyers, and radio campaigns, but their reach is limited.

Moreover, deep-rooted social norms continue to undermine implementation. Many families still consider household decisions a male domain, and women who assert their rights, particularly through the courts risk social backlash. Even when women are informed about their rights, cultural stigma and the burden of unpaid care work can keep them from claiming them. As of 2016, women in Togo spent more than twice as much time on unpaid domestic labor as men, a disparity that limits their economic opportunities.

The Road Ahead: Filling Legal and Cultural Gaps

The reforms of 2012 and 2014 were groundbreaking, but significant gaps remain. Togo lacks a dedicated legal framework to combat domestic violence, and societal attitudes toward spousal abuse remain troubling over 20% of the population finding it acceptable in certain cases. Additionally, a 300-day waiting period for widows to remarry, which does not apply to men, continues to discriminate against women based on outdated paternity assumptions. Labor protections have also weakened: a 2021 legal change removed the general ban on dismissing pregnant workers, and maternity benefits are only partially covered by the state, placing a financial burden on employers and creating hiring disincentives.

Advocates argue that Togo should not only eliminate remaining discriminatory laws but also introduce affirmative obligations to promote women’s inclusion. These could include legal guarantees for equal access to credit or government-funded maternity benefits, as seen in countries like Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Broader public education campaigns, translated into local languages and delivered through trusted media channels, will also be essential to reshape public perceptions and embed gender equality in both law and practice.

Togo’s experience is a powerful reminder that legal change, while necessary, is only the beginning. The country’s family law reforms reflect what is possible when local activism, political leadership, and international support converge. Now, the task is to ensure that these rights are not just protected on paper but lived by every woman across Togo.