The Senegal-Turkey Business Forum and Senegal Business Trip, organized by the Independent Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association (MÜSİAD), took place from February 23 to 26, 2021.

The Senegal Business Forum, organized on Tuesday, February 23, 2021, was attended by 18 Turkish and 40 Senegalese businesspeople, including Ahmet Kavas, Türkiye's Ambassador to Dakar; Faruk Baştürk, MÜSİAD Senegal Representative; Mehmet Zeki Güvercin, MÜSİAD Board Member and Chairman of the Diplomatic Relations Committee; and Davut Altunbaş, Chairman of the MÜSİAD Export Development Trade Matching Committee.

Mehmet Zeki Güvercin, a member of the MÜSİAD Board of Directors and Chairman of the Diplomatic Relations Committee, commented on the Senegal-Turkey Business Forum and the week-long Senegal Business Trip, saying, "The African continent is a continent with which we have had intense relations with Turkey for the last 15 years. It encompasses an area of ​​approximately 31 million square kilometers, encompassing nearly 1 billion people, representing 15% of the world's population, and where approximately 2,000 different languages ​​are spoken. Considering that 50% of Africa's population consists of young people under the age of 19-20, its importance and immense potential become even more apparent. In Senegal, 42% of the population consists of young people under the age of 15. Despite the country becoming Muslim in the 11th century and being freed from French colonial rule in the second half of the 19th century, the influence of France is clearly evident in the country." Güvercin, stating that Senegal is one of the most important countries on the African continent, continued:

“The fact that Senegal has never experienced a coup since its founding is proof that it is a stable and stable country. Senegal offers significant opportunities for Turkish businesspeople. First and foremost, it boasts $4.1 billion in exports and approximately $8 billion in imports. Bordering Mauritania, Mali, Gambia, and Guinea, Senegal, a 190,000-square-kilometer country, directly serves a basin with a population of 38 million. While the African continent has coastlines on the Mediterranean, Indian Ocean, and Atlantic Ocean, Senegal also has a coastline on the Atlantic Ocean—a full 531 kilometers. This demonstrates the country's significant potential, particularly in the fishing sector. As MÜSİAD, during our business trip here, we conducted significant B2B meetings to develop both Senegal's exports and imports with Turkey. Considering the requests from businesspeople attending the Senegal Business Forum during the COVID-19 pandemic, We have once again identified the need to carefully examine the countries from which Senegal imports. Senegal imports approximately $500 million from Belgium. A similar figure is also reported from the Netherlands. Its exports to Switzerland and Mali are very high, exceeding half a billion dollars.

The opportunity to establish a 100% Turkish-owned company in Senegal provides a significant advantage. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's visits to Senegal, the efforts of MÜSİAD Chairman Abdurrahman Kaan to further activate our country's business community during the pandemic-induced global economy in 2020-2021, and the contacts made by businesspeople on the Senegal Business Trip, will begin to bear fruit in the second quarter of this year.

The Goal is to Achieve $1 Billion in Exports to Senegal

Davut Altunbaş, Chairman of the MÜSİAD Export Development and Trade Matching Committee, stated that the Senegal Business Trip was a crucial step in developing bilateral trade between Turkey and Senegal. He emphasized the importance of the contacts made during the trip:

“As the MÜSİAD Export Development and Trade Matching Committee, we held more than 100 B2B meetings. New partnerships were developed through the Senegal Business Trip program, and a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Senegal's leading business organizations and MÜSİAD. As part of our trip, significant steps were taken with the businesspeople MÜSİAD brought from Turkey and the businesspeople from the other countries, aiming to reach $1 billion in trade volume.”

During the trip, the MÜSİAD delegation visited the Turkish Embassy in Dakar, Senegal Maarif Schools, Senegal Ministry of Commerce, Senegal Ministry of Industry, and Senegal Chamber of Commerce. They exchanged ideas on developing trade relations between the two countries and also conducted sectoral studies through market visits.