The Luxembourg Development Cooperation in Senegal
Since the establishment of their first development cooperation relations in 1987, Luxembourg and Senegal have continued to strengthen their ties with a view to fostering a sustainable and positive transformation. Over the years, they have passed several significant milestones that have strengthened their privileged partnership, the most recent being the signing of the fifth Indicative Cooperation Programme (ICP V) on 19 July 2023.
From 1987 to 2023: a history of solid and reliable partnership
The first trace of cooperation between Luxembourg and Senegal dates back to 1987, and it was in 1993 that Senegal acquired the status of a privileged partner country of the Luxembourg Development Cooperation. This relationship was formalised by the signing of a general cooperation agreement in 1998. With the establishment of the mission for cooperation of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg in Dakar in January 2001, Luxembourg set up its first direct representation on the African continent with the aim of getting closer to the target populations and strengthening the effectiveness and visibility of cooperation between the two countries. The continued strengthening of these relations was reflected in 2007 by the upgrading of the mission to an embassy.
The joint elaboration of Indicative Cooperation Programmes marked a key turning point in the consolidation of this relationship. The first ICP (ICP I 2002-2006) was signed in April 2002, followed by ICP II (2007-2011) in January 2007. ICP III (2012-2016), signed in 2011, was extended until the end of 2017, bringing the activities of the Luxembourg Development Cooperation into line with the Plan for an Emerging Senegal and the joint programming of the European Union.
Endowed with an indicative financial envelope of 65 million euros, the fourth ICP was signed in January 2018 during the official visit of HRH the Grand Duke of Luxembourg to Senegal, for a period of five years (2018-2022), but it has been extended by one year, until the end of 2023. In a spirit of simplification and concentration, the ICP has focused on two intervention sectors, namely (i) health and social protection and (ii) vocational and technical training and youth employability.
Towards a new era of cooperation with ICP V
On 19 July 2023, ICP V was signed, covering the period 2024-2030, with a financial envelope of 154 million euros, including 14 million euros from the Climate and Energy Fund of the Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Sustainable Development. Following the example of Cabo Verde, Senegal thus becomes the second partner country of the Luxembourg Development Cooperation in which a whole-of-government approach is being implemented.
ICP V is based on a long-term vision: the well-being achieved by the Senegalese people through greater access to quality basic social services, enabling them to integrate socio-economically and thus contribute to the economic growth and sustainable development of their country.
More specifically, it is structured around four priorities, namely (i) health and social protection; (ii) vocational and technical training, employability and professional integration, with a focus on financial inclusion and the socio-economic empowerment of women and young people; (iii) water and sanitation from the perspective of the environment and climate change; and (iv) governance, coordination, monitoring and the inclusion of cross-cutting themes in the implementation of the ICP. These cross-cutting themes are human rights, gender, inclusive governance and environmental sustainability.