Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has announced a significant increase in public investment for 2026, with education, health and access to water identified as key priorities.
The announcement was made during his traditional New Year’s Eve address to the nation on Wednesday, where he outlined the government’s development agenda for the coming year.
In the education sector, the president said 62.8 billion CFA francs will be allocated to the construction of new infrastructure, including 2,500 classrooms across the country.
Health spending will also rise sharply, with an additional 91 billion CFA francs earmarked for the construction of 35 modern community health centres, the completion of the Diamniadio Oncology Hospital, and the upgrading of medical facilities nationwide.
Access to water was described as a “strategic priority” for 2026. President Faye announced the launch of the Grand Water Transfer Project, which is expected to mobilise 1.8 million cubic metres of water per day to sustainably supply the Dakar–Mbour–Thiès urban corridor as well as the city of Touba.
Looking back on 2025, the head of state described the year as “demanding,” marked by “rigour and resilience,” while highlighting what he called tangible progress for the country.
He pointed to improvements in the cost of living, noting that government measures to reduce prices of essential goods generated savings of 342.5 billion CFA francs for households in 2025, with similar efforts planned for 2026.
President Faye also cited positive results in agriculture and industry. Cereal production surpassed 2.5 million tonnes, while the groundnut sector regained momentum. In addition, the relaunch of agri-food company SONACOS after a two-year shutdown helped create more than 2,300 direct jobs, he said.
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