VZCZCXRO8981
PP RUEHPA
DE RUEHDK #3213/01 3631257
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 291257Z DEC 05
FM AMEMBASSY DAKAR
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3788
INFO RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHLMC/MCC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 DAKAR 003213 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR H, AF, AF/RSA, AF/PDPA, AF/EPS AND AF/W 
AID/W FOR LPA/CL - SUSAN WILLIAMS AND AFR/WA 
NSC FOR AF SENIOR DIRECTOR COURVILLE AND DIRECTOR SWAYNE 
TREASURY FOR SONIA RENANDO 
USDOC FOR 4510/OA/PMICHELINI/AROBINSON-MORGAN/KBOYD 
USDOC FOR 3131/CS/ANESA/OIO/GLITMAN/MSTAUNTON 
PARIS FOR POL - D'ELIA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OREP PREL ECON EINV PGOV PHUM KMCA KPKO SG
SUBJECT: SENEGAL SCENESETTER FOR CODEL KOLBE 
 
REF: A) STATE 232253 (NOTAL), 
B) DAKAR 3186 (NOTAL), 
C) STATE 228797 (NOTAL) 
 
DAKAR 00003213  001.2 OF 006 
 
 
SUMMARY 
------- 
¶1.  (SBU) As the Mission and the Government of Senegal 
(GOS) prepare to host you, Senegal is on the verge of 
entering a year-long election campaign leading up to the 
2007 elections.  The Senegalese are proud to be a 
predominantly Muslim democracy that preaches tolerance and 
visibly supports the United States in combating terrorism. 
The investigation and prosecution of leading politicians 
and journalists in 2005 has, however, tarnished Senegal's 
impressive human rights record.  Concurrently, the GOS is 
seeking to enhance economic growth, both short- and medium- 
term, to reinforce its prospects at the polls.  Growth has 
remained steady at five percent over the last decade. 
Despite high rates of poverty and illiteracy, Senegal 
retains a high degree of political stability and 
coherence.  This in turn enables it to be a diplomatic 
player on a continent replete with conflicts.  Senegal's 
own two-decade old Casamance separatist movement is 
talking about peace.  With U.S. training and assistance, 
Senegal has become one of the world's top ten contributors 
of peacekeepers.  Senegal aspires to become a more 
significant trading partner, but internal barriers to 
export-driven growth and continuing reliance upon foreign 
assistance have greatly retarded these hopes.  The 
prospect of a successful private sector-driven Millennium 
Challenge Account (MCA) Compact offers a realistic 
potential for breaking with the past.  Nevertheless, 
Senegal must do far more to make its investment 
environment attractive enough to entice serious foreign 
capital, and also to utilize its own substantial domestic 
liquidity.  Among other factors, Senegal must push forward 
more vigorously with reforms and strengthen its fragile 
judiciary that is lacking sufficient resources and often 
subject to external influences.  Senegal could also do 
much more to develop export agro-industry to benefit its 
largely agrarian economy as well as develop its relatively 
advanced telecommunications infrastructure.  In addition 
to discussing the MCA proposal and U.S. assistance, you 
could usefully raise the human rights issue.  END SUMMARY. 
 
DEMOCRACY IS THRIVING 
--------------------- 
¶2.  (SBU) Senegal is at an interesting juncture in its 
post-independence history, almost six years through the 
seven-year tenure of President Abdoulaye Wade (pronounced 
"wahd") and a year before parliamentary and presidential 
elections.  Wade was a determined and persistent 
opposition politician from 1974 who finally won an open, 
peaceful and highly competitive election in March 2000. 
His victory was as much due to a strong Senegalese 
national desire for change after nearly 40 years of 
socialist party governments, as it was in favor of the 
"new" vision that Wade was offering.  In fact, having 
raised expectations somewhat unrealistically, Wade has 
come under tough scrutiny and criticism for not having 
realized many of his campaign promises.  His government 
also has not made much progress in implementing the 
visionary projects he trumpeted while in the opposition. 
Nevertheless, he and his party, the Senegalese Democratic 
Party or Parti Democratique Senegalais (PDS), have been 
successful in further institutionalizing democratic 
values, respect for human rights, expansion of tolerance, 
advancement of women's rights, and freedom of expression 
in all its forms.  As a consequence, the standards by 
which the performance of his government is being measured 
are admittedly higher than those of his predecessors, a 
healthy sign that the large majority of Senegalese expects 
democratic behavior from this government. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) In August, Senegal's National Assembly voted to 
indict former Prime Minister Idrissa Seck on charges of 
corruption and endangering state security.  The corruption 
charges are directly related to public works projects in 
the City of Thies.  Many Senegalese believe that the 
 
DAKAR 00003213  002.2 OF 006 
 
 
charges are unfounded and stem from President Wade's 
desire to sideline a potential rival.  In addition to 
Seck, a number of his supporters have been detained and 
interrogated by police, and two opposition politicians 
were detained for two weeks and six months, respectively, 
after calling for demonstrations against the Government. 
Moreover, the GOS has pressed charges against Sud FM Radio 
and the national daily Sud Quotidien for airing and 
publishing, respectively, an inflammatory interview with a 
Movement of Democratic Forces of the Casamance (MFDC) 
military leader who said he would like to "meet Wade on 
the battlefield with a kalishnikov."  That trial is now 
scheduled for January 6.  Taken together, these cases 
tarnish Senegal's otherwise impressive human rights 
record. 
 
SENEGAL'S UNIQUE BRAND OF ISLAM 
------------------------------- 
¶4.  (SBU) Wade and other Senegalese leaders operate within 
a unique context in Africa.  In addition to the democratic 
and tolerant environment noted above, Senegal is 95 
percent Muslim.  It is instinctively resistant to 
religious extremism in general and Islamic fundamentalism 
in particular.  One reason for this moderation is 
Senegal's distinctive, syncretic and flexible 
interpretation of Islam.  Another may be its geographic 
position at the western edge of the Islamic world.  But 
perhaps the principal reason is the pervasive influence of 
the Sufi brotherhoods, indigenous homegrown societies that 
are hostile to external influences that could undercut 
their religious or political authority.  The overwhelming 
majority of Senegalese identify themselves with one of the 
four principal Brotherhoods (Tidjane, Mouride, Qu'adria, 
and Layenne).  Politicians use these affiliations to 
advance their agendas.  Furthermore, this religious 
establishment has always closely associated itself with 
and strongly supported the state, and has thus reinforced 
a strong social contract that has been a bulwark against 
more extremist religious views. 
 
SENEGAL'S ECONOMY: AN ACHILLES HEEL 
----------------------------------- 
¶5.  (SBU) There is general economic stability (a result of 
traditional indigenous welfare values).  Economic growth 
has averaged five percent annually in recent years. 
However, more than half the population lives in poverty, 
one-third to one-half have no reliable employment, and the 
agricultural sector (in which 60 percent of the population 
is employed) is weak and unreliable.  Historically, 
agriculture has focused on peanuts as a cash crop adapted 
to Senegalese soil and climatic conditions.  But this 
sector has been in decline for several years and is 
unlikely to regain its former importance.  Other major 
exports include phosphates and cotton, but both face 
difficulties. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Senegal's manufacturing and services sectors are 
hampered by major infrastructure weaknesses that prevent 
Senegal from taking advantage of its favorable geographic 
location.  Senegal's underdeveloped road and dilapidated 
railway systems do not provide adequate links to Senegal's 
landlocked neighbors, who could profit from exporting 
through Dakar's international port.  Roads are overly 
congested in major urban areas as well as poorly 
maintained almost everywhere in the country.  (The 
Minister of Infrastructure, Equipment and Transportation 
is only receiving about one third of what he considers the 
minimum necessary to maintain existing roads.) 
Electricity supplies are improving, but still very 
expensive and far from universally available.  This is a 
problem for a rational industrial policy where Senegal 
suffers a strong comparative disadvantage because of 
expensive inputs such as electricity.  The Port of Dakar, 
the closest African port to the U.S. and Western Europe, 
is in great need of modernization to meet the potential 
demand of the sub-region alone. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) There are some bright spots though.  Senegal met 
its goals in the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) 
 
DAKAR 00003213  003.2 OF 006 
 
 
program and achieved cancellation of its Paris Club debt 
in July 2004.  In December 2005, the IMF and the World 
Bank announced the cancellation of USD 1.3 billion in 
multilateral debt, potentially freeing up USD 80 million 
in yearly debt-service payments.  Senegal follows sound 
macroeconomic policies and has maintained low inflation 
and restrained public sector spending.  The 
telecommunications system is excellent by African 
standards, and after South Africa, has the second largest 
bandwidth available for Internet access on the continent. 
An American company is rehabilitating the railroad between 
Dakar and Bamako and has already made significant 
progress.  The national airline, Air Senegal 
International, has been very successful as a sub-regional 
entity and recently acquired a new Boeing 737 for both 
domestic and regional service, with prospects of adding 
another new 737 in the next year.  However, Senegal has 
not aggressively pursued becoming a FAA Category One 
country meeting ICAO international air safety standards, 
which would permit Air Senegal to initiate direct flights 
to the United States.  Nevertheless, the GOS is optimistic 
that it will attain Category One before the end of 2006. 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Despite some successes the business environment 
remains difficult.  Senegal has traditionally been a 
French and Lebanese expatriate business preserve. 
Nonetheless, approximately 50 U.S. companies, including 
Citibank, Pfizer, Colgate-Palmolive, IBM, Microsoft, Ernst 
and Young, Fortesa Energy, Suffolk University, Boeing, 
DHL, UPS, Western Union, and Caterpillar, operate in 
Senegal.  The American Chamber of Commerce in Senegal is 
active and has many Senegalese entrepreneurs with ties to 
the United States as members.  Input costs remain very 
high due to the weak infrastructure, insufficient 
competition and rigid labor codes and practices.  An 
underfinanced and understaffed judiciary tends to favor 
plaintiffs against foreign (and domestic) investors. 
Corruption is an issue, and while Wade has said the right 
things about combating it, members of his own family are 
often rumored to demand bribes and percentages of 
investments.  While government rhetoric speaks favorably 
of the benefits of the private sector, in practice the 
Government involves itself in many major transactions and 
potential investments that undermine the principles of 
free, open and transparent competition.  All of the above 
are factors that need to be addressed alongside Senegal's 
MCA Compact, as a more favorable business and investment 
climate will be key to creating employment and to 
increasing economic growth. 
 
¶9.  (U) Senegal's exports to the United States average 
about USD 3 million per year, principally in frozen fish 
and foodstuffs for West African immigrants.  The 
Senegalese government long believed that Senegal could 
revive its once thriving role as a regional center for 
apparel manufacture through African Growth and Opportunity 
Act (AGOA) exports.  While a few apparel companies are 
preparing to take advantage of the AGOA here, government 
and U.S. emphasis is now on preparing Senegalese 
agricultural exporters to market high quality fish and 
traditional West African agricultural products to the 
United States.  Other local farmers are pursuing exports 
of off-season conventional fruits and vegetables, such as 
green beans. 
 
SENEGAL'S FOREIGN POLICY PRIORITIES START IN NEIGHBORHOOD 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
¶10.  (SBU) Senegal devotes major efforts to maintaining a 
modicum of stability on its borders.  While politically 
Wade has worked hard to expand Senegal's role on the 
continent and in world affairs, his government actually 
expends real resources (financial, material and 
humanitarian) with its near neighbors.  For example, Wade 
has been engaged in Guinea-Bissau since the September 2003 
coup d'etat.  Characteristic of Senegal's regional 
anxieties, Wade and his government continue to express 
great concern over the eventual transition in nearby 
Guinea (Conakry) in light of the failing health of its 
leader and the potential for disruptions there and a 
 
DAKAR 00003213  004.2 OF 006 
 
 
resulting influx of refugees to Senegal.  Also, the 
sometimes erratic behavior of Gambian President Jammeh, 
who rules the strategically located strip of land that 
juts into Senegal, raises Senegalese concerns over The 
Gambia's stability. 
 
CASAMANCE CONFLICT 
------------------ 
¶11.  (SBU) The internal conflict in Senegal's southernmost 
Casamance region has regional security implications 
because it borders The Gambia and Guinea-Bissau.  During 
the 20 plus years of conflict, some of the Casamance 
combatants sought refuge in the neighboring countries. 
Over the past few years, good progress has been made to 
lower the level of conflict thus easing border tensions. 
A definitive political resolution to the conflict remains 
an elusive goal, but the Government and rebels signed a 
formal cease-fire in December 2004, and a round of 
negotiations was held earlier this year.  We have tried to 
use our influence with GOS civilian and military 
institutions as well as with community representatives in 
the Casamance to achieve reconciliation and a lasting 
resolution to the conflict. 
 
U.S. ASSISTANCE 
--------------- 
¶12.  (U) In addition to supporting the Casamance peace 
process, U.S. assistance to Senegal has focused on health, 
education, export promotion, promotion of women's rights, 
good governance and decentralization.  Approximately 130 
Peace Corps Volunteers are involved in health, education, 
natural resource management and micro-enterprise programs. 
An MCA Compact would more than double annual U.S. aid, and 
Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) staff have labeled 
Senegal's Compact proposal the most complex and the most 
potentially transformative of any MCA proposal received to 
date. 
 
COMMITMENT TO REGIONAL PEACEKEEPING/COOPERATION WITH U.S. 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
¶13.  (SBU) In the 1990s the USG initiated the African 
Crisis Response Initiative (ACRI), a military assistance 
and training program, to provide African militaries with 
the capability of participating in peacekeeping 
operations, principally in Africa.  One objective of this 
program was to obviate the need for U.S. "boots on the 
ground" in areas where U.S. interests were at stake. 
Senegal was a major beneficiary and nearly 1,400 troops 
received U.S. training under ACRI, which is now known as 
the Africa Contingency Operations Training and Assistance 
(ACOTA) program.  This has paid major dividends through 
the engagement of Senegalese troops in their traditional 
areas of interest (Cote d'Ivoire) and in areas of 
traditional interest to us (Liberia).  Their troops are 
also deployed in UN peacekeeping operations (PKOs) in 
Darfur, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo 
(DRC), where a Senegalese officer, Lieutenant General 
(LTG) Baboucar Gaye, commands UN forces.  Senegalese 
paramilitary gendarmes also serve as civilian police in UN 
PKOs in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Haiti and the DRC.  In each of 
these engagements the Senegalese have earned the well- 
deserved reputation of being highly professional, 
disciplined and respectful of civilian populations and 
customs.  Concurrently, the United States has continued to 
strengthen bilateral cooperation through officer training 
in the U.S.; an active visits program; provision of 
military equipment; and successful regional deployments 
(Liberia, Cote d'Ivoire, Sierra Leone) involving joint 
operations.  The current Armed Forces Chief of Staff, LTG 
P.K. Fall, is a graduate of the Command and Staff College 
at Fort Leavenworth, the former commander of ECOWAS troops 
in Cote d'Ivoire, and a good friend of the United States. 
 
THE U.S.-SENEGAL AGENDA 
----------------------- 
¶14.  (SBU) For the United States, Senegal represents our 
most important francophone partner in Africa.  Perhaps not 
coincidentally, President Wade views himself as a good 
friend of President Bush.  He basked in the glow of the 
 
DAKAR 00003213  005.2 OF 006 
 
 
President's visit in July 2003, his December 2004 visit to 
the White House, Secretary of State Rice and Secretary of 
Agriculture Johanns' July 2005 visits, and invitations to 
the last two G-8 summits.  For Senegal, the United States 
represents an attractive alternative to its historical 
dependence on France.  We also embody values that Wade 
would like to establish in Senegal, particularly economic 
ones.  The basis of our economic successes stands in stark 
contrast to Senegal's first 40 years of statist socialism. 
However, there is a realistic appreciation among 
knowledgeable Senegalese that the United States is not 
likely to supplant France as its principal partner any 
time in the foreseeable future. 
 
¶15.  (SBU) On terrorism, Senegal has been among the first 
African states to recognize the dangers posed to its own 
security by international terrorism.  It has cooperated 
actively with the U.S. in the global war on terrorism, and 
Senegal has ratified 11 of the 12 key anti-terrorist 
conventions and protocols identified by the U.S. 
President Wade has also sent a set of draft laws to the 
Ministry of Interior that would expand the definition of 
terrorist acts and increase punishments for these acts. 
Senegal is also leading regional efforts to combat 
terrorist financing.  Intelligence sharing and vigilance 
along Senegal's borders is good and continues to improve 
through well established channels.  A word of caution, 
though: Senegal has agreed to host the next summit of the 
organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), tentatively 
set for 2007.  Because of a lack of resources, it will be 
highly dependent on Islamic states to finance all the 
arrangements.  We have raised our concerns with Senegal's 
leaders over the potential for unwanted influences from 
radical Muslim states, such as Iran.  The Senegalese have 
tried to reassure us that they expect to receive adequate 
financing from Senegal's "moderate" friends. 
 
¶16.  (SBU) We continue to scrutinize Senegal's 
relationship with Libya and Iran.  Thus far, Senegal has 
done a good job of compartmentalizing and managing those 
relationships to ensure that they do not act to undermine 
Senegal's stability.  We also continue to remind Senegal's 
leaders that too close an embrace will neither be well 
understood nor well appreciated in Washington.  Thus far, 
Wade has gotten the message.  With respect to the 
situation in Iraq, Senegal has been more neutral than 
during the first Gulf War.  (Senegal proudly provided 
troops to help evict Saddam from Kuwait.)  Senegal 
resisted French pressure to take a more critical posture, 
and in fact Wade publicly noted his satisfaction that 
Saddam had been removed from power. 
 
BOTTOM LINE 
----------- 
¶17.  (SBU) Senegal under Wade is a good partner, very 
sympathetic to U.S. interests, and regularly seeking ways 
to deepen the relationship.  Senegal is eager to receive 
critical MCA funding, and the GOS hopes to conclude its 
Compact in 2006.  Economically, Senegal continues to seek 
U.S. partners and participants to improve its economy, 
especially in agro-industry and transport.  A larger 
number of U.S.-trained personnel sympathetic to the 
American way of doing business now occupy more key 
governmental, business and civil society positions than 
ever before, and this trend is growing, especially in 
education and the private sector, where it is greatly 
enhanced by new technologies. 
 
¶18.  (SBU) Bilateral relations are very warm and continue 
to deepen as we expand our areas of cooperation and seek 
additional sectors of mutual benefit.  Senegal also 
carefully considers potential U.S. reactions to its 
particular foreign policy decisions, sometimes responding 
favorably when we express our concerns, or when we seek 
GOS support.  In sum, Senegal enjoys a close 
identification with the United States and many of our 
policies and values.  We just need to be mindful of the 
human rights issues and of some Senegalese sensitivities 
to too tight of a public embrace. 
 
DAKAR 00003213  006.2 OF 006 
 
 
 
JACKSON