President reduced to figurehead by new Togo constitution

Executive power will rest with the prime minister, reducing the presidency to a symbolic role.

BBC | Lawmakers in Togo have adopted a new constitution that will see the country shift from a presidential to parliamentary system of governance.

Executive power will rest with the prime minister, reducing the presidency to a symbolic role.

Under the new system, the president will be selected by parliament for a single six-year term, rather than being voted by the public.

Opposition parties boycotted Togo's previous elections and are poorly represented in Togo's parliament.

As a result, this new constitution change was approved almost unanimously on Monday - with only one legislator voting against and one other abstaining from the vote.

It is unclear if the new system will be in force when the West African country holds regional and legislative elections next month.

In 2019, Togolese lawmakers approved a constitutional change that introduced a two-term presidential limit.

As the 2019 constitutional change did not apply retrospectively, President Faure Gnassingbé, who has ruled Togo since 2005, was eligible to contest two more terms.