Dakar, Senegal — Hundreds of workers, union members and opposition supporters marched Senegalese People in the capital Dakar on Wednesday will protest against broken government promises and the worsening cost of living as the country grapples with a severe debt crisis.
The protests were organized by the country’s major labor unions and the Front for Defense of Democracy and the Republic, also known as FDR, the opposition coalition.
Modi Guiro, secretary general of the National Confederation of Senegalese Workers, the country’s largest labor union, said the government had betrayed an agreement last year that prohibited strikes in exchange for promises of better wages and working conditions. Officials say the government has little money left to spend because of the record debt crisis inherited from the previous administration.
Wearing red scarves and union caps, the protesters held placards demanding that the government rehire laid-off public sector workers and reduce income taxes. Some people raised slogans calling for the removal of Prime Minister Osman Sonko.
The government of the West African country, led by Sonko and President Bassirou Diomay FayeHe came to power in April 2024 promising to carry out ambitious reforms, including fighting corruption, creating jobs for youth and maximizing the country’s natural resource advantages.
But the ruling PASTEF party’s reform agenda has hit obstacles. A government audit in 2025 revealed that the previous government was reported to have a debt of $13 billion. talks to International Monetary Fund A new fiscal program has stalled as the country’s fiscal outlook worsens.
Senegal’s debt-to-GDP ratio has soared to approximately 132%, one of the highest in Africa.
The country’s economic difficulties have deepened the daily struggles of many, with young Senegalese among those most affected. About 75% of the country’s population is below 35 years of age.
Last February, protests at Senegal’s top public university over unpaid financial aid were met with violence by security forces, which led to the death of a student.
“The country is at a standstill. It is essential that the government finds solutions to revive Senegal’s economy instead of fighting everywhere,” said Mohamed Fall, a youth activist at the protest on Wednesday.
Another protester, Pep Laoubé Samb, is one of more than 700 Dakar port workers set to be laid off from the beginning of 2025 as the Senegalese government carries out a sweeping overhaul of state institutions.
“This is not what they promised the people. They said they would create jobs and develop the country, but they did exactly the opposite,” Samb, who worked at the port for more than 12 years before leaving, told The Associated Press.
The port director, who was appointed shortly after President Faye came to power, has described the action as dismantling irregular contracts inherited from the previous administration. Unions disagree, arguing that most of the workers targeted were associated with the previous government, and that the firings were illegal.
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