Belgian investment company Sea-Invest group has invested €26 million into a series of “super-infrastructure” projects in Senegal, the first of which will be ready for operation next week.
Belgian Princess Astrid and Federal ministers Hadja Lahbib, Willy Borsus, and Pascal Smet visited an oil terminal in the Autonomous Port of Dakar on Tuesday morning, which is managed by Sea-Invest.
The Belgian group is Senegal’s single largest investor. It first launched projects in the Dakar port in 2012. Since then, it has invested some €65 million into its Senegalese activities. It is primarily active in the bulk cargo terminals across Senegal and at the Dakar oil terminal where it enjoys a 25-year concession from the government.
The group provides between 850-1,000 jobs in the area for locals, according to a special advisor to the CEO of the company. Almost all (95%) of Senegal’s trade passes through the port, which accounts for 30% of the country’s GDP.
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Contrary to initial reports, which speculated that the security situation in Dakar could deteriorate on Tuesday morning, the State visit by the Belgian officials went off without incident.
The same day, a trial against political opponent Ousmane Sonko was initiated by Senegalese authorities. There was a heavy police presence across the capital, especially around strategic areas of the city, including the city’s court and the Cheikh Anta Diop University (UCAD).
On the occasion of the Belgian mission to Senegal, Brussels Secretary of State Pascal Smet state that delegation had come to the country without "Eurocentrism" in order to conduct "partnerships" and "not to give lessons."
