Frequently Asked Questions on Senegal

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IMF staff to visit Dakar from August 19 to September 1.
IMF Staff to Visit Senegal, August 17, 2026.
IMF Staff Concludes Visit to Senegal, June 22, 2026.
Mission Chief for Senegal: Mercedes Vera Martin.
Discussions on a new Fund-supported program began during the October 2025 IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington, DC.
The visit will provide an opportunity to continue discussions with the authorities toward an IMF-supported program and to engage with other stakeholders.

Focus: reach a shared view on the macroeconomic outlook, financing needs, and policies and reforms that could be supported by an IMF lending arrangement.
Overarching goal: help Senegal safeguard macroeconomic stability, restore debt sustainability, and foster sustainable and inclusive growth.
IMF engagement focuses on assessing debt sustainability, the macroeconomic outlook, and appropriate policies and reforms. Decisions on any debt strategy remain the responsibility of the Senegalese authorities.
As with all IMF member countries, any Fund financing must be underpinned by a sustainable debt outlook and supported by policies that place public finances on a credible and durable path.

Senegal’s economy has remained resilient despite a challenging global environment, supported by strong growth in the hydrocarbon sector.
External and fiscal balances have improved, helped by oil exports and government efforts to contain spending.
Fiscal and debt vulnerabilities remain elevated.
Near-term outlook faces significant risks:
- Higher global oil prices will increase pressure on public finances, particularly through the cost of broad-based energy subsidies.
- Elevated debt vulnerabilities, global uncertainty, and tighter financial conditions could make financing conditions more challenging.

Discussions with the authorities have focused on addressing the root causes of the misreporting.
Measures undertaken include audits to establish the stock of public debt and agreeing on reforms to strengthen debt management and prevent future misreporting.
IMF staff are monitoring the implementation of the agreed measures to safeguard credibility, reduce vulnerabilities, and strengthen public finance management.
IMF staff commend the authorities for their commitment to transparency and for taking steps to identify and disclose the hidden debt.

Authorities are implementing key reforms to strengthen fiscal oversight and transparency, including:
- centralizing debt management,
- enhancing debt data quality,
- auditing payment arrears,
- reinforcing budget controls.
The reforms will be phased in. The IMF will continue to monitor the implementation of these reforms, including during discussions around a new IMF-supported program.
IMF and World Bank staff are working closely with the authorities on updating the debt sustainability analysis to reflect the most recent debt data and macroeconomic outlook.

Once the authorities have addressed the root causes of the hidden debt and developed policies to address underlying macroeconomic imbalances under a new IMF-supported program, the IMF Executive Board will decide whether to grant a waiver to pre-empt an early repayment of IMF financing.

In carrying out its work, the IMF relies on data provided by country authorities.
The IMF is a learning institution and is reflecting on this experience to further strengthen its surveillance and data integrity frameworks.