Geography of Togo

Opened on the Bay of Benign the in the Gulf of Guinea, the Togo occupies a narrow strip of land in West Africa, between the Ghana and the Bénin. Its greater width is only of 160 km, for 579 km length.

Relief

The Togolese relief consists mainly of two covered plains of Savane separated by the Chaîne from Togo, directed south-west in the North-East.

Togo is generally divided into six geographical areas. The sandy coast is bordered of flats and not very deep lagoons. The lakes are many, largest being the Lac Togo.

More to north, between 60 and 90 meters of altitude, the plate of the Ouatchi extends on about thirty kilometers. It is called sometimes Ground of bar because of his reddish ground, rich in iron. The North-West of the plate of Ouatchi is the basin of the Mono.

The Monts Togo cross the country of south-west to the North-East in direction of the Bénin, where they take the name of Atakora, and of the Ghana, where they name then Akwapim. The culminating point of Togo is the Mont Agou, with 990 meters.

To the north of the Togo mounts, the Oti, one of the principal affluents of the Volta, crosses a sandy plate covered with Savane.

The extreme North-West of Togo, composed of Granite and Gneiss, is more abrupt with in particular cliffs of Dapaong.

Climate

Climate of Togo tropical east . The southern half knows two wet seasons per year, from April at June then from September to October. With 890 millimetres of annual precipitations, the east coast the driest area of the country.

Only one rain season ago in the northern half of the country, from June to September. Average precipitations are assembled at 1200 millimetres per year, generally concentrated over the four summer months. The Harmattan rises regularly during the winter.

The annual variations of temperature are weaker in the south (of 23° with 32° C) that in the north (of 18° with 38° C).

Exploitation of the ground

arable lands: 38%
permanent crops: 7%
permanent pastures: 4%
forests: 17%

Natural resources: Phosphate S, sandstone, Marble.

Environment

environmental Problems: Deforestation due to the culture on Denshering and the overexploitation of wood as an energy source.

International treaties on the environment: biodiversity, climate changes, turning into a desert, species in danger, right of the sea, marine pollution, prohibition of the atomic tests, protection of the layer of ozone, marpol 73/78, tropical wood 94, wetlands.

Sources

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