The Senegalese government, under the impetus of the new authorities, vigorously resumed the process of humanitarian demining in Casamance. This Thursday, Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko will preside, at the Mbao Free Zone, the official ceremony of receipt of demining machines, in the presence of the Ambassador of Japan, M. Takeshi Akamatsu. He is a good man. This material is intended to accelerate the depollution of lands still contaminated by antipersonnel mines in the southern region of the country. This major acquisition is part of a Japanese financing of 460 million yen (nearly 2 billion CFA francs) granted under the Programme de Développement Économique et Social (PDES). It strengthens the capacity of the Centre national d’action antimines du Sénégal (CNAMS), which is responsible for carrying out the clearance operations. Since the launch of the demining programme in 2007, Senegal has had only one machine provided by the European Union and the Swiss Foundation, which is now out of service after 17 years of operation. On 8 October 2024, Prime Minister Sonko had already chaired an interministerial meeting focused on the return of displaced persons, in connection with the security issue of demining. A technical preparatory meeting, chaired by the Deputy Secretary General of the Government, was held on 17 September 2024. These initiatives are part of the implementation of the Diomaye Plan for the Casamance, a political, social and economic roadmap led by President Bassirou Diomaye Diakhar Faye.
Operation de déminage: The Senegalese government determined to clean up the Casamance
