VZCZCXRO1749
PP RUEHDT RUEHLMC RUEHMA RUEHMR RUEHPA RUEHPB
DE RUEHDK #1268/01 1501553
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 301553Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY DAKAR
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5250
RUEHLMC/MCC WASHDC PRIORITY
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RUCNMCM/MCC COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DAKAR 001268 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR AF, EB, AF/EPS AND AF/W 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON EAID EIND KMCA SOCI SG
SUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL COUNCIL REPRESENTS WATERSHED IN 
SENEGAL'S COMPACT DEVELOPMENT 
 
REF: DAKAR 1204 (NOTAL) 
 
DAKAR 00001268  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY: On March 2, Senegalese President 
Abdoulaye Wade convened an extraordinary Presidential 
Council to review the status of Senegal's Millennium 
Challenge Account (MCA) proposal.  Prime Minister Macky 
Sall, most Ministers, heads of major independent 
agencies, representatives of multilateral donors, private 
sector and civil society leaders, media, then Charge, 
USAID/Senegal Director and EconOff attended.  The four 
and one-half hour meeting was remarkable for its 
transparency and underscored President Wade's 
determination to move the MCA project forward. 
Subsequent meetings with Wade, Millennium Challenge 
Corporation (MCC) staff; Director General of the Agency 
for the Execution of the Diamniadio Platform (AMPMD) 
Habib Mbaye; and the Ministers of Finance, Industry, and 
Urbanism have highlighted some of the issues that must 
still be addressed as we work with the GOS to finalize 
the Compact for the complex and potentially 
transformative industrial platform.  However, it appears 
that the March 2 meeting represents a watershed and has 
energized the Senegalese.  AMPMD is certainly hiring 
staff and making progress on the list of things that must 
be done before the Compact can be signed.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  (U) On March 2, President Wade convened an 
extraordinary presidential council to examine the status 
of Senegal's MCA proposal.  Opening the meeting, Wade 
stressed that the proposed MCA Compact is an integral 
part of Senegal's Poverty Reduction and Accelerated 
Growth Strategies (PSRP and AGS).  He stated that the 
Diamniadio Platform is expected to have a positive impact 
on the GDP growth.  Wade was also clear that the 
Government of Senegal (GOS) has not moved fast enough. 
Acknowledging the MCC's concerns about inaction, Wade 
assured the assembly that all required actions would be 
completed by March 17, which they were.  Wade also tied 
Diamniadio to other projects, including new sources of 
energy, the toll road from Dakar to Diamniadio, increased 
agricultural exports, revitalization of Senegal's fishing 
sector, a new airport, expanded tourism, literacy, 
education, training and land reform.  Wade underscored 
that the real issues are creating jobs, adding value to 
Senegal's exports, and decentralizing industry to move it 
beyond the "Cap Vert" Peninsula on which Dakar, 30 
percent of the population and 80 percent of Senegal's 
industry are located. 
 
¶3.  (U) Addressing specific MCC concerns, Wade discussed 
the moratorium on land transfers and development within 
the 2,600-hectare site, acknowledging that 112 hectares 
is already occupied.  He publicly agreed to the 
appointment of an independent land observatory as well as 
to the appointment of a local implementation committee 
that would ensure a participative development process. 
Wade concluded his opening remarks by stressing that the 
objective of the MCA Diamniadio Industrial Platform is to 
improve the living conditions of Senegalese. 
 
¶4.  (U) Following presentations by Minister of Industry 
and Handicrafts Bienta Ba Samb, former Minister of 
Agriculture Habib Sy and Senior Minister of Maritime 
Economy and Maritime Transport Djibo Ka, Senior Minister 
of Economy and Finance Abdoulaye Diop and Director 
General of Senegal's Investment Promotion Agency (APIX) 
Aminata Niane discussed the need for more private 
investment.  Diop said public investment continues to 
exceed private investment even though there has been a 
three-fold increase in private investment over the last 
six years. 
 
¶5.  (U) Mbaye and other AMPMD staff reviewed projected 
financing and employment, stressing that the GOS hopes to 
attract more than 1,000 industries to the site over tenyears.  In addition to agro-industry, a new Coca-Cla 
bottling plant, a new Colgate-Palmolive manufcturing 
facility, an "Indi-Park that would assemle Tata buses, a 
"gold counter," an artists' village, and an Iranian car 
assembly plant are alread planned. 
 
¶6.  (U) President Wade, noting that n Senegalese are 
currently investing in the tourim sector, then turned to 
the private sector reprsentatives and appealed to them 
to become involved in every aspect of the Platform.  Mor 
Talla Kane of the National Confederation of Senegalese 
Employers (CNES) responded by urging the GOS to keep the 
 
DAKAR 00001268  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
private sector apprised and involved.  Dakar Chamber of 
Commerce President Mamadou Lamine Niang said the 
platform's energy and transport needs must be urgently 
addressed, stressing that the railway needs to be 
upgraded and extended.  Niang also encouraged the 
Government to stop land speculation and ensure that other 
projects do not conflict.  The Mayor of Diamniadio and 
various civil society representatives discussed poverty 
reduction and enhanced mobility. 
 
¶7.  (U) Then Charge, USAID/Senegal Director Carduner, the 
IMF and World Bank representatives spoke about the 
viability of the project and stressed our conviction that 
it can create employment and reduce poverty.  Charge 
noted our excellent bilateral relations and highlighted 
that Senegal was one of the first 16 countries to be 
eligible for the MCA.  Charge also noted that if 
concluded, the Compact would more than double U.S. 
assistance from its current level of approximately USD 40 
million per year to over USD 100 million per year for the 
five years of the Compact.  Carduner encouraged a 
coherent, common strategy and a focus on export 
promotion, highlighting the need for public-private 
partnerships. 
 
¶8.  (U) Prime Minister Sall and Senior Minister for 
Foreign Affairs Cheikh Tidiane Gadio noted that Senegal 
is eligible for the MCA because of its record of good 
governance, respect for human rights and economic reform. 
They assured the assembly of the GOS' commitment to a 
participatory process.  Sall also assured everyone that 
AMPMD's funding problems had been resolved. 
 
¶9.  (U) President Wade closed the four hour and 30 minute 
meeting by calling for continued dialogue among all 
actors.  He assured everyone that the necessary decrees 
would be put in place (and they have been).  He promised 
to address Senegal's very serious energy problems. 
Finally, he thanked President Bush for his vision, his 
frankness and his faith in Senegal, saying that the 
Diamniadio Industrial Platform would be a big success for 
everyone. 
 
¶10.  (SBU) COMMENT: Subsequent meetings with Minister of 
Industry Samb and APIX Director General Niane highlighted 
Senegal's desire to attract new types of industry in 
addition to the call centers that have represented a 
significant percentage of recent investment and are more 
appropriate for Dakar than for Diamniadio.  Meetings with 
MCC and AMPMD staff, as well as with the Ministers of 
Finance and Urbanism, have highlighted the issues that 
must still be addressed as we work with the GOS to 
finalize the Compact for this complex and potentially 
transformative industrial platform.  MCC staff recently 
commented on the new dynamic and new AMPMD staff.  It 
appears, therefore, that the March 2 meeting represented 
a watershed and has energized the Senegalese.  In fact, 
on May 29, President Wade told a visiting American that 
the MCA Compact remains his highest priority.  END 
COMMENT. 
 
JACOBS