The territory of present-day Togo was part of the Bight of Benin slave-trading region, a major departure zone in the transatlantic slave trade. However, Togo itself is usually not treated as a standalone “top exporting region” in historical rankings.

The coastline of modern Togo (especially areas like Aného and surrounding coastal zones) was involved in slave trading from the 1600s to the 1800s.

It was closely tied to larger, more dominant trading hubs in the region, especially Ouidah in present-day Benin, and to trading networks extending into present-day Ghana and inland areas.

European traders (Portuguese, Dutch, British, and French at different times) operated through these coastal systems, relying heavily on African intermediaries and regional states.

Many enslaved people from the broader Bight of Benin region were shipped to Brazil, the Caribbean, and North America.