A high-level conference in Dakar, originally scheduled to be opened by Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko but ultimately led by parliamentary group president Ayib Daffé, has reignited debates about Senegal’s growing debt burden. The event, organized under Sonko’s patronage, focused on exploring alternative debt solutions to those proposed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Daffé emphasized the need to “diversify perspectives” and move beyond “dogmatic financial approaches”, signaling Dakar’s reluctance to accept the IMF’s proposed debt restructuring terms.

Economists at the conference argued that Senegal’s external debt has become unsustainable, with current revenues insufficient to cover both principal and interest payments. Souleymane Bah, an economist, stressed that the government’s current strategy—borrowing to repay existing debt—only exacerbates the crisis as interest rates continue to rise.

Why the IMF approach faces pushback

Critics, including Ndongo Samba Sylla of Ideas Africa Network, contend that the IMF’s framework prioritizes creditor interests over economic transformation. “The IMF’s model is purely accounting-based and pro-creditor,” Sylla stated. “It pushes countries to borrow more just to signal solvency, not to invest in sustainable growth.”