Despite their dynamic political, diplomatic, and cultural relations, Senegal and Gambia have not fully exploited trade opportunities, a Senegalese official said in Dakar on Thursday.
“Tariff and non-tariff barriers between Gambia and Senegal constitute, in our view, one of the most visible marks of the state and evolution of our cooperation at the border. This commercial cooperation is truly fluctuating. As you know, our trade does not exceed 120 billion (CFA francs/year),” said Makhtar Lah, Secretary General of the Senegalese Ministry of Trade and Industry.
Presiding over the opening of a day of exchanges between the Union of Industrialists and Traders of Senegal (UPIC) and their Gambian counterparts, Mr. Lah noted progress in trade between Dakar and Banjul over the past five years.
According to him, Gambia has gone from 1 to 6 billion CFA francs and Senegal from about 44 billion to perhaps 100 billion CFA francs.
“It is clear that the economic and trade relations and exchanges between the two countries are not at the level of the political, diplomatic, or even cultural relations that we have between our two countries,” he said.
He added: “This shows the importance and interest of this type of meeting to discuss concretely how to bring trade to the level of political relations, heads of state, or policies. There are efforts to revitalise exports on both sides.”
The Secretary General of the Ministry of Trade and Industry stressed that the working visit by the Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko, on December 19 and 20, on the occasion of the fifth session of the consultative commission on the follow-up of cooperation between Gambia and Senegal, was an opportunity for both governments and the private sector to review issues of common interest and reaffirm the political will of both leaders to raise cooperation and trade relations to a strategic level.
“One of the strongest conclusions,” Makhtar Lah recalled, “was the call to the competent authorities to relax or even eliminate unnecessary non-tariff barriers, harmonise trade-related technical rules, and promote investment and trade between the two countries.”
TE/lb/as/APA