AGP Executive Report

FDI Shock in Senegal: UNCTAD data shows Senegal’s foreign direct investment plunged about 90% in 2025 to US$337m after a construction-heavy oil and gas boom (Sangomar, GTA) drove much higher inflows in 2020–2024. Energy Transition Watch: A broader debate on climate finance argues the world is funding the “transition” unevenly, warning energy-poor countries need portfolios that match real demand. Senegal Agrifinance Push: Alexander Zanders’ agritech credit-scoring model says it has individually scored 17,000+ farmers across Nigeria, Senegal and Liberia, aiming to unlock formal lending where data gaps kept farmers “unbankable.” Border Tensions Context: A Bulock incident analysis highlights how the Gambia–Senegal border dispute is rooted in deeper historical and security frictions, not just a fence. UN Leadership Process: Senegal’s Macky Sall is among candidates as the Security Council starts secret straw polls; UNCTAD chief Rebeca Grynspan leads early support. Port/Logistics Signal: DP World’s Ndayane dredging progress is reported as ahead of schedule, reinforcing Senegal’s shipping infrastructure momentum.

UN Process: The UN Security Council kicked off the race to replace António Guterres with its first secret straw poll, with Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan leading early (10 “encourage” votes) ahead of Guyana’s Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett (9) and Argentina’s Rafael Grossi (7), while results stay confidential to avoid speculation. Senegal in the Mix: Senegal’s former president Macky Sall is among the seven candidates named for the UN secretary-general post, keeping Senegal’s diplomatic profile in the spotlight. Energy & Corruption Watch: A Turkish energy firm, Aksa Enerji, faces scrutiny in a US bribery and money-laundering trial tied to a Ghana electricity contract, raising questions about state-linked expansion tactics into African power markets. Port & Logistics: DP World’s Ndayane dredging at Senegal’s port is reported to have advanced ahead of schedule, supporting smoother maritime operations. Agriculture & Finance: UfarmX says it has credit-scored 17,000 farmers across Nigeria, Senegal and Liberia and unlocked $6.8m in farm commerce, aiming to close Africa’s formal credit gap with data-driven lending. Marine Aquaculture: Senegal has launched its first marine aquaculture pilot project using floating fish cages, a new step for coastal food production.

Marine Aquaculture Pilot: Senegal has started testing marine fish farming with floating cages off Diakhanor (Palmarin), aiming to cut pressure on traditional fishing and create hundreds of jobs if the pilot scales. Energy & Infrastructure: Woodside says production from the Sangomar offshore oil field off Senegal remains strong and is evaluating a Phase 2 expansion with talks involving Petrosen and the government. Mining Investment Pipeline: Fortuna Mining approved a 30% capacity expansion of Côte d’Ivoire’s Séguéla Gold Mine, boosting processing capacity and targeting higher recoveries and output. Digital Finance for Growth: United Capital is pushing digital transformation across Africa, including Senegal, to improve cross-border access and customer experience. Payments & Media Skills: AfricaNenda trained journalists on inclusive instant payment systems, including Senegal-based reporters, to help drive adoption and regulatory understanding. Labour Market Signals (Regional): Gambia’s 2026 labour survey reports higher participation and lower unemployment, while informality remains very high—useful context for West African industry planning. UN Leadership Process: The UN begins a confidential straw poll to pick a successor to António Guterres, with Senegal’s Macky Sall among the declared candidates.

Marine Aquaculture Push: Senegal has started testing marine fish farming with floating cages off Diakhanor (Palmarin), a pilot backed by the National Aquaculture Agency and Atlantic Mariculture, aiming to cut pressure on traditional fishing and create hundreds of jobs. Port & Logistics Upgrade: DP World says it completed dredging at the Port of Ndayane 13 months early, clearing the way for faster construction toward a 2028 deep-water container hub for West Africa. Energy & Industry Planning: Woodside is evaluating a Phase 2 expansion for the Sangomar offshore oil field in Senegal, with talks involving Petrosen and the government to extend production and unlock additional reserves. Regional Gas Infrastructure: Morocco is seeking U.S. Exim Bank and World Bank support for the $26bn African Atlantic Gas Pipeline linking gas from Nigeria, Senegal and Mauritania to Europe via the Maghreb-Europe corridor. Data-Driven Governance: ECOWAS opened a Dakar meeting urging national statistics agencies to improve reliable, harmonised data systems—key for policy, planning and regional integration. Finance & Risk Watch: Former World Bank chief David Malpass warns that collateral-backed sovereign borrowing (including deals involving Senegal) can complicate debt restructuring and reduce transparency. Digital Payments Momentum: AfricaNenda is training journalists across West Africa to help drive trust and adoption of inclusive instant payment systems.

Port & Logistics: DP World says it has completed major dredging works at Senegal’s Port of Ndayane 13 months ahead of schedule, clearing a 5-km navigation channel and berth pocket and pushing the US$1.2bn deep-water project toward completion in 2028, with 1,000+ workers now on site. Energy & Industry: Senegal hosts AFOGEX 2026, spotlighting Sangomar, GTA and Yakaar-Teranga, with a focus on local content, SME integration, skills/technology transfer, and jobs. Digital Payments & Media: AfricaNenda trains journalists across West Africa (including Senegal) to help the public understand and trust inclusive instant payments. Data-Driven Governance: ECOWAS opens a Dakar meeting urging national statistics agencies to deliver reliable, harmonised data for policy and regional integration. Climate & Food Security Tech: NiMet and Senegal’s AKADEMIYA2063 sign an MoU to expand AI and analytics for weather, climate services, resilience and agricultural productivity. Labour Market Snapshot (Gambia): GBOS reports 733,364 employed in 2026, with informality still high—construction and agriculture among the most affected. Space Finance Focus (Lomé): Space Forum Africa in Lomé puts financing front and center for Africa’s space ambitions.

Port & Logistics: DP World says it has finished dredging at Senegal’s Port of Ndayane 13 months early, clearing a 5-km navigation channel and berth pocket for the US$1.2B deep-water project that targets completion in 2028—an upgrade meant to boost Senegal’s role as a West African container gateway. Energy & Investment: The IEA reports Africa’s upstream oil and gas investment slid to $37B in 2025 (from $68B in 2016), with Algeria, Angola, Egypt, Nigeria and Libya driving most activity—raising questions for future exploration and financing. Digital Climate Services: Senegal is linked into a NiMet–AKADEMIYA2063 MoU to expand AI and climate/weather data analytics, aiming to strengthen climate information services for resilience and food security. Public Health Capacity: Africa-wide tobacco policy monitors met in Lagos for ATIM training, including Senegal participants, to better track and counter tobacco industry interference. Politics & Industry Environment: Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye launched a new Kiiraay party, signaling shifting political dynamics that can affect business confidence and policy continuity. Regional Governance Data: ECOWAS pushed for reliable, harmonised statistics in Dakar to improve evidence-based planning across member states.

Senegal Oil & Gas Investment Push: Senegal hosted the inaugural Africa Oil & Gas Expo (AFOGEX 2026), spotlighting Sangomar, GTA and Yakaar-Teranga, with a strong focus on local content, SME integration, skills transfer and HSE to attract investors and jobs. Port & Logistics Delivery: DP World says it completed dredging works at Senegal’s Port of Ndayane/Ndayane dredging ahead of schedule, reinforcing momentum for trade and maritime capacity. Energy Finance Bottleneck: Ghana’s energy minister Jinapor (speaking regionally) flagged financing as the main barrier to unlocking Africa’s energy potential, urging strategic, collaborative funding and deeper regional power trade. Digital Payments for Trade: PhotonPay published a report on Africa’s fragmented payment rails, noting Senegal’s higher digital usage and the need for unified cross-border settlement to help B2B growth. Health Systems in Action: Africa CDC released a practical hepatitis B toolkit for prevention, diagnosis and management—aimed at district-level care where specialists are far away. Regional Diplomacy: Erdoğan and Senegal’s Faye discussed trade, investment and defence industry cooperation. Politics: Diomaye Faye launched the Kiiraay party, formalizing his break with Sonko/Pastef. Public Health Watch: AFOGEX and other regional events also sit alongside tobacco-industry monitoring training in Senegal and across Africa.

Port & Logistics: DP World says it has finished major dredging at Senegal’s Port of Ndayane 13 months early, clearing the way for quay and marine works and targeting a 2028 completion—using two large suction dredgers and removing over 95% solid rock. Agriculture & Food Systems: A new Africa-wide food security update reports hunger falling for the first time in nearly a decade, with fewer people facing chronic hunger and moderate/severe food insecurity—though the next push is making nutritious diets affordable. Health & Implementation: Africa CDC released a practical hepatitis B toolkit aimed at district-level care, tackling low screening and treatment rates across the continent. Trade & Defense Ties: Turkey’s Erdoğan spoke by phone with Senegal’s Faye on boosting bilateral trade, investment, and accelerating defense industry cooperation. Payments & Digital Commerce: PhotonPay published research on Africa’s fragmented payment rails and how unified cross-border settlement could reduce liquidity and settlement frictions for businesses. Politics: Senegal’s President Faye launched a new party, Kiiraay—Republican Patriots—formalizing a split after internal rifts.

Port Infrastructure: DP World says it has finished major dredging at Senegal’s Port of Ndayane 13 months early, clearing the way for quay and marine works to start sooner and keeping the port on track for a 2028 completion; the project used two large suction dredgers to remove a 5-km navigation channel, turning basin and berth pocket, with over 95% of material being solid rock and completed without blasting. Politics: Senegal President Bassirou Diomaye Faye launched a new party, Kiiraay (“protection/shield” in Wolof), after his rupture with former ally Ousmane Sonko, positioning it around “republic, ethics, transparency, fraternity and work.” Agriculture & Industry Tech: Senegal is rolling out GEOAGRI-SEN, using satellite data to support farming—aimed at boosting productivity through better agronomic decisions. Sports & Business Spotlight: FIFA chief Gianni Infantino hit back at World Cup critics, telling them to “meditate, pray or watch a football match,” while Senegal’s WAFCON campaign context remains in focus after Algeria beat Senegal 2-0 in the opener. Energy Transition: A broader Africa energy push highlights that financing is still the biggest bottleneck to unlocking power for industrial growth, with calls for coordinated public-private investment and deeper regional electricity trade.

UN Leadership Race: Six candidates, including Senegal’s Macky Sall, faced pointed questions in a UN town hall on fixing Security Council deadlock and a cash-strapped UN ahead of the formal secretary-general selection process. Senegal Politics: President Bassirou Diomaye Faye launched a new party, Kiiraay (“protection/shield”), after the rupture with Ousmane Sonko, pitching “Republican Patriots” values of ethics, transparency, fraternity and work. Regional Finance Training: Three Togolese professionals completed the first phase of COFEB’s BCEAO finance master’s program in Dakar, alongside participants from across WAEMU—an effort to strengthen banking and public finance skills across the region. Senegal Industry & Tourism: Senegal’s Pink Lake (Lake Retba) is regaining its rosy hue after 2022 flooding, with salt extraction and livelihoods starting to return as excess water is pumped out. Energy & Investment Lens: A forum in Ghana highlighted that financing remains the biggest barrier to unlocking Africa’s energy potential—an issue closely tied to industrial growth and regional power trade. Senegal Sports Law: CAS will hear Senegal’s appeal over the CAF decision that stripped it of the 2026 Women’s AFCON title to Morocco.

Senegal Politics: President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has launched a new party, Kiiraay, in Dakar after his rupture with former mentor and ex–prime minister Ousmane Sonko, positioning it around “republic, ethics, transparency, fraternity and work” and “Republican Patriots.” Energy & Industry Finance: Ghana’s energy minister John Jinapor says Africa’s energy push is still bottlenecked by financing, noting most funding has concentrated in a handful of countries and urging coordinated, strategic investment to unlock power, industry growth, and regional electricity trade. Regional Gas Infrastructure: ECOWAS has greenlit the $25bn Nigeria–Morocco Atlantic gas pipeline, setting a legal framework for a ~6,000km project with construction targeted for 2028 and volumes aimed at Morocco and onward to Europe. Senegal’s Pink Lake Economy: Senegal’s Lake Retba salt trade is restarting as the lake’s salinity and color recover after the 2022 flood, bringing back jobs for harvesters and reviving tourism. UN Leadership Watch: Uganda’s Olara Otunnu has joined the race for UN secretary-general, adding to a crowded field as candidates debate reforms, funding, and Security Council deadlock.

Political Realignment: Senegal President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has officially launched a new party, Kiiraay, in Dakar after his rupture with former mentor and ex-PM Ousmane Sonko, signaling a fresh phase in the country’s political landscape. Agri-Exports: Senegal’s Directorate of Plant Protection has closed the 2026 fresh mango export campaign effective Sunday, July 26 at 5:00 PM, citing fruit-fly pressure, orchard maturity, and the need to protect phytosanitary compliance for EU markets. Mining/Industry: EPC Groupe has won a contract at Senegal’s Boto gold mine, pointing to continued investment and project momentum in the mining sector. Tourism & Salt Trade: Senegal’s Pink Lake (Lake Retba) is regaining its rosy hue after the 2022 flood, with salt extraction and local livelihoods starting to restart. Energy Finance: Ghana’s energy minister Jinapor says financing is the key bottleneck to unlocking Africa’s energy potential, urging coordinated public-private investment and deeper regional power trade.

Senegal Mango Exports: Senegal’s Directorate of Plant Protection has officially closed the 2026 fresh mango export campaign, effective Sunday July 26 at 5:00 PM, after monitoring and phytosanitary checks across key production zones; no new EU-market phytosanitary certificates will be issued after the end date unless a special derogation is granted. UN Leadership & Senegal’s Macky Sall: In New York, six candidates for UN Secretary-General—including Senegal’s Macky Sall—fielded tough questions on Security Council deadlock and UN credibility, with Sall promising to restore trust in his first 100 days. WAFCON Build-Up: Ahead of WAFCON 2026 in Morocco, ESPN highlights emerging stars to watch, while the tournament also serves as a qualifier for the 2027 Women’s World Cup. Sports Governance (Senegal vs Morocco): The Court of Arbitration for Sport set an October 8 hearing on Senegal’s appeal after CAF stripped Senegal of its 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title and awarded it to Morocco. Finance for SMEs (IFC): IFC appointed Claude Owona Ekoto as Regional Director for Financial Institutions in Central Africa and Anglophone West Africa, aiming to expand access to finance for SMEs, including risk-sharing support involving Senegal.

UN Leadership & Reform: Six candidates for the next UN Secretary-General, including Senegal’s Macky Sall, faced tough questions on Security Council deadlock, UN funding shortfalls and internal trust issues during a UN town hall in New York, with diplomats set to begin a first straw poll later this month. Senegal in Regional Spotlight: The same UN race keeps Senegal’s role visible as Sall argues for restoring credibility and making the UN more agile and effective in a fragmented world. Sports Governance (Senegal): The Court of Arbitration for Sport will hear Senegal’s appeal on Oct. 8 after CAF stripped the team of its 2026 Women’s AFCON title in favour of Morocco. Payments & Trade Infrastructure: PhotonPay published research on Africa’s fragmented payment rails and how next-gen stablecoin-powered settlement could ease cross-border frictions for businesses, citing Senegal’s higher digital payments usage versus lower adoption elsewhere. Food Security: FAO data says hunger in Africa declined for the first time in a decade, but the report warns the next challenge is making nutritious diets affordable.

UN Leadership Race (Senegal in the spotlight): Senegal’s former President Macky Sall joined five rivals in a UN General Assembly town hall in New York, pitching how to restore trust and make the UN more agile ahead of Security Council voting. Sports Infrastructure & Events: Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper announced an extra $500m for Bank of America Stadium renovations (total $1.3bn), aiming to attract events like the Super Bowl and the 2031 Women’s World Cup—another reminder of how stadium upgrades can drive local industry and services. Energy (Regional relevance): A report says Nigeria is Africa’s biggest small-scale solar market, with Senegal also listed among top solar investment destinations—useful context for Senegal’s own power and investment planning. Creative Industries (Gambia–Senegal region): The Gambia hosted a stakeholder meeting to boost its music and arts sector as an economic driver, with Senegal’s wider West African cultural momentum in view.

UN Leadership Race: Six candidates, including Senegal’s Macky Sall, faced 90 minutes of questions in a UN General Assembly town hall ahead of Security Council voting to replace António Guterres. Senegal Olympics & Jobs: Senegal is set to host the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games starting 31 October, with organizers stressing a first-for-Africa moment and hopes for youth employment. Senegal Industry Spotlight: Senegal’s Pink Lake salt trade is bouncing back as the lake regains its rosy hue, helping restart salt workers’ livelihoods. Energy & Power (Regional): Nigeria’s small-scale solar boom is accelerating as households and businesses bypass the grid, while BloombergNEF flags weak utility-scale pipelines as the bottleneck. Food Inflation Watch: SBM Intelligence reports Nigeria’s Jollof Index rose 14.6% y/y in June, pointing to persistent food supply and logistics pressures. Plastics Treaty Pressure: Observers warn that plastic-pollution treaty talks risk being shaped behind closed doors by major oil and plastic producers. Sports Business: Panthers owner David Tepper is adding $500m to stadium renovations in Charlotte, aiming to attract major global events. Creative & Culture: Senegal’s “Le Live de Papa” made the shortlist for the RFI Theatre Prize, highlighting new Francophone playwright talent.