Senegal’s economic reforms under scrutiny at UEMOA review

Senegal Faces Calls to Address Reform Delays in UEMOA Assessment

The political phase of the 11th annual review of UEMOA community reforms concluded yesterday in Dakar, following a one-day postponement. The event brought together key figures including Abdoulaye Diop, President of the UEMOA Commission, to evaluate progress and identify areas requiring urgent attention.

While Senegal maintains an overall satisfactory performance across 145 evaluated reforms, the 2.14-point decline from 2024 has prompted authorities to implement swift corrective measures. The provisional implementation rate stands at 76.45%, down from 78.59% last year. This setback stems primarily from underperformance in economic governance, convergence, and structural reforms, which saw a 6.3-point drop.

Key Areas Requiring Immediate Action

• Governance and Convergence: Weaknesses in economic governance and convergence frameworks have emerged as critical concerns.
• Structural Reforms: The 6.3-point decline in this category signals significant challenges in implementing systemic changes.
• Compliance Reporting: Failure to submit the 2024 report on the unified financial statement filing window to the UEMOA Commission highlights administrative lapses.
• Priority Sectors: The culture, tourism, craftsmanship, quality standards, and business climate sectors demand immediate focus to bridge existing gaps.

Notable Progress in Other Domains

Despite these setbacks, several sectors have demonstrated remarkable improvement:

• Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Environment: These sectors saw a 12-point increase in implementation rates.
• Human and Social Development: Progress of 6.5 points reflects targeted interventions in education and social welfare.
• Energy Sector: A 3-point improvement indicates successful modernization efforts.
• Legal and Statistical Frameworks: The 5.5-point gain in modernization initiatives demonstrates commitment to regulatory upgrades.

The UEMOA review, established under the Additional Act of October 24, 2013, serves as a critical mechanism to assess collective progress toward treaty objectives, identify gaps, and formulate actionable recommendations. Since 2014, Senegal has undergone ten reviews with generally positive outcomes. This 11th edition marks the second under the biennial political configuration established on July 8, 2023.

Cheikh Diba, Senegal’s Minister of Finance and Budget, confirmed that the findings will be presented to the Prime Minister in a special audience with the UEMOA Commission President. This high-level engagement underscores the government’s determination to accelerate compliance with community standards ahead of the next review cycle.

Abdoulaye Diop emphasized the review’s role in evaluating joint actions, pinpointing deficiencies, and delivering practical recommendations to enhance regional integration. The commitment to addressing challenges was palpable, with authorities vowing to translate these findings into tangible administrative reforms.