The Senegalese economy is expected to experience a sharp slowdown over the next two years.
After growth of 6.75% in 2025, gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to increase by 2.7% in 2026 before falling to 1.5% in 2027, Minister of Economy, Finance and Planning Cheikh Diba announced on Saturday.
These projections were presented behind closed doors to the National Assembly's expanded Finance and Budgetary Control Committee, which met to examine the draft initial finance bill for 2027.
“In 2026, growth slows to 2.7%. For 2027, we project it at 1.5%,” the minister said. However, he defended these forecasts, arguing that the slowdown represents the cost of the economic recovery efforts undertaken by the authorities. According to him, the government now favors realistic projections rather than overly optimistic estimates.
Cheikh Diba also explained that the strong growth recorded in 2025 was mainly driven by the start of production at the Sangomar oil field and the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim gas project, as well as the strong performance of the agricultural sector. Excluding hydrocarbons, growth reached only 2.2%, he specified.
Alongside the economic slowdown, the government intends to continue consolidating public finances. The draft initial finance bill for 2027 therefore aims to reduce the budget deficit to 4.7% of GDP, compared with the 7.6% included in the draft supplementary finance bill for 2026, which was rejected by lawmakers on Tuesday.
For Cheikh Diba, this objective represents a considerable fiscal effort, equivalent to a reduction of nearly three percentage points of GDP within a single year, in an economic environment marked by numerous uncertainties.
These forecasts thus reflect the challenges facing Senegal: maintaining economic activity while reducing budgetary imbalances and strengthening public finances.
