As part of the celebration of the 18th anniversary of the magazine “Réussir Business”, a panel was organized in Dakar on the theme “Senegal at the time of endogenous development: the main levers of a systemic rupture”. This event brought together government representatives, business leaders, experts and managers of financial institutions, including banks and insurance companies.
Participants deplored the closure of several emblematic factories, such as SEIB, SOTIBA and BATA, as well as the persistence of investments considered obsolete. They stressed that Senegal cannot remain isolated in a world marked by increasing market opening. However, they pleaded for the protection of emerging companies, often vulnerable to multinationals, and for reforms allowing full participation of national actors in economic activity.
The panel also discussed the role of the new public policy framework entitled “Senegal 2025: national transformation agenda”, which aims to make the country a sovereign, just and prosperous nation. To achieve this, the panelists highlighted the need to break with economic models based on dependence on external aid and public debt. Instead, they advocate mobilizing resources to strengthen economic, energy, food, social and cultural autonomy.
The President of the National Confederation of Employers of Senegal (CNES), Mr. Adama Lam, insisted on the potential of the private sector, made up of many competent and committed entrepreneurs. According to him, supporting this sector is essential to revive the national economy and lay the foundations for endogenous development. However, he deplored the lack of investment opportunities in Senegal compared to other countries in the sub-region, as well as the long and complex procedures linked to calls for applications.
-The interventions also highlighted several areas for improvement including the revision of the investment structuring texts. The six texts which govern investment must therefore be reformed to stimulate development. It is also urgent for these actors to promote economic self-sufficiency. Every year, 135 billion FCFA are spent to import Tabaski sheep, mainly from Mali. This situation could be corrected by developing local capacities.
It is also a question of encouraging technical and professional training because there is an urgent need to strengthen skills in industrial professions and accelerate the mechanization of agriculture. The development of industrial infrastructure also remains a priority and, for the panelists, this includes the creation of development poles and the structuring of industrial sectors to encourage the creation of complete value chains, as in the cotton and peanut sectors. and cashew. Another point that has attracted the attention of stakeholders is to promote renewable energies through the promotion and intensification of solar and wind energy.
The panel concluded on the need for hard work and collective mobilization to meet the challenge of endogenous development. Concrete and immediate actions must replace speeches and slogans to make Senegal a prosperous and autonomous economy, they said.
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