Plane at the Leopold Sedar Senghor airport in Dakar, Senegal, with the African Renaissance monument in the background
Copyright© Thomas Trutschel/photothek.net
Senegal A reform-oriented and established democracy
President Macky Sall has presented an ambitious government and economic recovery programme. By 2035, the government wants Senegal to have graduated from the least developed country category, achieving the status of an emerging economy. The United Nations Human Development Index (HDI) currently ranks the Republic of Senegal 170th out of 191 countries.
German development cooperation with Senegal
In 2019, Germany and Senegal agreed a reform partnership under the G20 Compact with Africa initiative. It is intended to improve the environment for private investment and thus create more employment. Very close cooperation has grown from the reform partnership. The focus is on the following core areas:
- Peaceful and inclusive societies
Area of intervention: good governance - Sustainable economic development, training and employment
Areas of intervention: technical and vocational education and training, private sector and financial sector development - Climate and energy, just transition
Areas of intervention: renewable energy and energy efficiency; sustainable urban development - Health, social protection and population policy
Area of intervention: health, pandemics and One Health
In 2022, the German Development Ministry (BMZ) approved funding totalling 128 million euros for the cooperation with Senegal. 68 million euros are being provided in the form of budget support. This funding flows directly into the country’s budget and can be used by the partner government with complete autonomy – in compliance with pre-defined rules. Structural reforms in the area of public finance, improvements of the business environment and initiatives to increase the resilience against the consequences of climate change are prerequisites for the disbursement of the funds.
Migration
Since 2017, Senegal has been a target country for the BMZ programme on migration and development. In 2018, a German-Senegalese migration advice centre (External link) was opened in the country’s capital of Dakar. Together with local projects under German development cooperation, the centre is offering advice on social and job opportunities on the ground and assistance in finding training and psychosocial support and is helping returning migrants to acquire vocational training and find jobs. In the long run, the partner is to assume full ownership and responsibility for operating the centre.
Close partnership Creating jobs and fostering private investments
The overarching goals of the Senegalese-German partnership are the development of the private sector, the creation of jobs, and better training for the workforce. An additional objective is to increase the effectiveness of the administration so that it can provide better support to small companies that have so far been operating informally to help them transition to the formal sector.
The biggest hurdles for companies are in the areas of labour law, land law, access to loans and vocational training. Under the partnership, Senegal has committed to carry out reforms in these areas. In return, the BMZ is providing support to the reform programme through a range of measures.
Since 2019 the partnership has evolved in line with needs on the ground. New key aspects of the cooperation are a just energy transition, higher crises resilience, the development of local markets for medicinal products and targeted support to empower women and girls.
SDG trends for Senegal
- On track or maintaining SDG achievement
- Moderately improving
- Stagnating
- Decreasing
- Trend information unavailable