The Prime Minister of Togo replied with heartfelt words of thanks, that this tree- planting symbolizes a new era in the relations between Togo and Israel; just as the sapling itself represents a hope for the future. In the name of Togo's President and their entire nation, he thanked KKL-JNF, and expressed the hope that Togo would utilize the great know-how that KKL-JNF and the scientific community in Israel have acquired in the field of fighting desertification – one of the difficulties facing Togo.
The Prime Minister himself read the Planter's Prayer aloud and proceeded to plant a small olive sapling in the Grove of Nations. After the ceremony, several members of his entourage said that although they studied much about Israel before they came, they were astonished to see the pace of development on the one hand and the country's green vistas, which they had envisaged as desert! They all related to the fact that as believing Christians, this, their first visit to the Holy Land, was especially meaningful and indeed, immediately after the ceremony, the Prime Minister of Togo and his entourage set off to visit the holy sites in the Old City of Jerusalem.