Cour des Comptes du Togo

The Court of Accounts (Cour des comptes) is Togo's supreme audit institution. It is a judicial institution whose independence is guaranteed by the Constitution, with administrative and financial autonomy (Art. 2). It judges the accounts of public accountants, declares and clears de facto management, judges management faults and rules on appeals from the Regional Courts of Accounts (Art. 5).

It assists Parliament, notably in examining the settlement law, and the government in monitoring the execution of finance laws, controls the spending of political parties in election campaigns, evaluates public policies, and carries out studies on its own initiative or at the request of Parliament, the Economic and Social Council or the government (Art. 6).

It audits the State, national public establishments, public enterprises, social security institutions and other public or semi-public bodies, and certifies the accounts of public administrations (Art. 7). Its members have the status of magistrates and are irremovable (Art. 13).

The First President, the Attorney General, the chamber presidents, the advocates general and the senior counsellors (conseillers-maîtres) are appointed by decree in the Council of Ministers; the referendary counsellors (conseillers référendaires) and auditors are appointed by decree in the Council of Ministers on the Prime Minister's proposal, after the opinion of the finance minister and the favourable opinion of the National Assembly (Art. 13).

Magistrates are appointed for six years, renewable (Art. 14). The First President is elected by secret ballot among the senior counsellors for three years, renewable once, in a vote chaired by the President of the Constitutional Court, and is then appointed by decree (Art. 18).

Under the statute of the magistrates (Organic Law 2021-026), a magistrate who breaches statutory duties or the honour or dignity of the office faces disciplinary sanctions (Art. 24); revocation is pronounced by decree in the Council of Ministers on the proposal of the Superior Council of the Court of Accounts and the Regional Courts of Accounts (Art. 28).

Magistrates investigate on documents and on site (Art. 63), audited bodies must communicate all documents and information on request (Art. 64), the Court may hear any director or representative of audited bodies (Art. 69), and a person who fails to supply documents or information, or to answer questions or a summons, may be fined 500,000 to 5,000,000 CFA francs, after a possible daily penalty (Art. 119).

The annual activity report and the annual public report are addressed to the President of the Republic, the government and Parliament (Art. 44), and the Court publishes its particular decisions and its reports on its website and in at least two national newspapers (Art. 48). Its own accounts and management are audited each year by a committee that includes the chairs of the finance committees of the National Assembly, the Senate and the Economic and Social Council (Art. 49).