Paul Amegakpo, president of the Tamberma Institute for Governance (ITG) based au Togo. Photo by Jean Sovon, used with permission. Originally scheduled for April 20, 2024, Togo is getting ready to hold its combined legislative and regional elections on April 29, 2024. As this will be the first regional election to be held under the decentralization process, this election will be a first for this country of over nine million inhabitants. Togo is divided into five administrative regions and has 113 members of parliament elected for a six-year term (including the April 2024 elections). Following these elections, the country will have a new senate, where the regional councils will elect two-thirds of its members and the President of the Republic will appoint the remaining one-third. The primary role of senators will be to deliberate on the bills and proposed legislation of the National Assembly and government alike. These elections come amid the Sahel-related security threats already looming over northern Togo and young people’s disillusionment with politics and the fact that the same political family has been in power since 1967. To shed light on these matters, Global Voices interviewed Paul Amegakpo, an expert in political governance and president of the Tamberma Institute for Governance in Togo. This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. : Cette double élection se prépare dans des conditions d'apaisement relatif du climat politique, mais aussi de certaines inquiétudes qui concernent le délai très court pour déployer certaines opérations afin de s'assurer d'une organisation transparente, crédible et surtout de l'inclusion des acteurs dans le processus. Le gouvernement a mis en place un cadre de concertation avec les acteurs politiques, mais au-delà, il y a d'autres préoccupations qui méritent d'être prises en compte afin de s'assurer que le climat global d'organisation de ces élections rassure les acteurs et renforce la confiance des citoyens. Il est important que les conditions soient réunies notamment pour donner la possibilité aux partis politiques et aux candidats indépendants de pouvoir mener leurs activités sur toute l'étendue du territoire. Cela permettrait donc aux citoyens de comprendre les projets de société de chaque parti et candidat, et de pouvoir opérer leurs choix de manière responsable. C'est la première fois que le Togo organise un double scrutin, et surtout ce double scrutin qui associe les régionales aux législatives alors que le Togo n'a jamais connu les régionales. Normalement, il aurait fallu avoir un délai relativement plus long dans la convocation du corps électoral ou dans la fixation de la date du scrutin, annoncée le 8 février 2024, pour permettre aux acteurs de la société civile, aux acteurs politiques et même aux partenaires qui accompagnent le Togo de pouvoir mettre un accent sur l'éducation civique et électorale, pour que les citoyens comprennent les enjeux de ce scrutin et à y participer au mieux. This combined election is being organized in a relatively calm political environment. However, there are also some concerns about the very short timeframe for implementing certain initiatives to ensure its organization is not only transparent and credible but also includes the stakeholders in this process. The government has set up a consultation framework with politicians. But, aside from this, other concerns need to be addressed to ensure that the overall climate for organizing these elections reassures politicians and builds trust among citizens. The conditions must be right to enable political parties and independent candidates to carry out their work throughout the country. This would thereby enable citizens to see the social projects of all parties and candidates, to make responsible decisions. This is the first time that Togo has held a combined election, , and Togo has never held regional elections. This double election combines regional elections with legislative elections. A relatively longer timeframe would normally have been required to convene the electorate and set the date for the election, which was announced on February 8, 2024. This would enable civil society representatives, political representatives and even Togo’s working partners to focus on civic and electoral education to enable citizens to fully understand what is at stake in these elections and participate in them. : C'est une grande question. Le Sénat est la deuxième chambre du Parlement, et a pour fonction de contrôler les actions de la législature menées par les députés.