Senegal's new president wants to rethink, renew ties with EU
Senegal's new president, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, wants to rethink and renew relations between Dakar and the European Union (EU) during the visit to the country by the president of the European Council, Charles Michel, which ends today.
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Mundo Senegal
Faye, who took office on April 2 after defeating the government candidate and then Prime Minister Amadou Ba, stressed that, according to the Europa Presse news agency, cooperation with the bloc "is dense and multifaceted", but stressed that Senegal "wants a partnership that is rethought, renewed and fertilized by a shared vision of a fairer international order that reflects the realities of today's world".
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At a joint press conference in Dakar, he called for "a partnership adapted to the changes and capable of supporting the innovative dynamics" that the new Senegalese authorities "want to imprint on relations" with the European bloc.
"I also conveyed to the President of the European Council that Senegal's friends and partners are invited to join us in carrying out our program for a sovereign, just and prosperous Senegal in a progressing Africa", said Faye, who stressed that Dakar's priorities "are articulated around an endogenous economic model of industrialization as a launching pad for the primary sector".
Faye stressed that Charles Michel's visit to the country "is proof of the bonds of friendship and cooperation between Senegal and the EU" and highlighted the need for both parties to face "common challenges, such as peace, security and climate change".
On the other hand, he also expressed his gratitude for the "constant support of the EU" to the neighboring country of Guinea-Bissau in many areas, including cooperation, energy, agriculture, health, transport and employment.
The Head of State also mentioned the EU's support in the situation in the Sahel, in the fight against terrorism and stated that it is also necessary to address "the migratory situation, linked to the existing problems".
On the other hand, Charles Michel said, about the meeting with Faye, that it was "a good conversation", "very fruitful", which "shows that there is a common ambition to work for a quality bilateral partnership, based on two fundamental principles: respect and trust".
In this sense, he stressed that they had discussed the "pillars" of these relations and confirmed that the parties should also address "issues where there is a feeling that they should be addressed", including fisheries, in order to achieve "improvements for both parties", in the face of "legitimate concerns".
Michel also expressed the EU's interest in seeing "Senegal face the challenges, including those of cooperation, economic emergency and improving the quality of life of the population", as well as the phenomenon of migration, including irregular migration.
"The world order is the result of political choices made in the last century, when the world was totally different", he acknowledged, before adding that the bloc supports "more justice and more inclusion" in international organizations.
Faye won the presidential elections as an independent candidate supported by the main opposition leader, Ousmane Sonko, after the latter was removed following his conviction, in 2023, for "corruption of minors", after being accused of rape, an accusation that was eventually rejected.
The current President promised to implement political and economic reforms to restore national sovereignty, including in key sectors, which is why he recently announced a process of renegotiating oil and gas exploration contracts, to which are added those signed with the EU in the area of fisheries.
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