Senegal reached a decisive milestone in its quest for military sovereignty with the imminent establishment of a plant for the assembly of tactical military vehicles in Mbacké, in the Diourbel region. This strategic project, with an overall cost of 35 billion CFA francs, aims at an annual production of 1 000 vehicles for the Senegalese armed forces, thus strengthening their logistical and technological autonomy. This initiative is part of a wider process of consolidation of the national defence industry. On 7 November 2024, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the State of Senegal and the Société Industrie Sénégal de Véhicules Militaires (ISEVEM), in the presence of the Minister of the Armed Forces, General Birame Diop, and the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Serigne Guèye Diop. This partnership also includes the Republic of Korea, guaranteeing a transfer of essential skills and technologies. According to retired Colonel Antoine Wardini, former head of the Directorate of Information and Public Relations of the Armed Forces (DIRPA), this plant constitutes “a lever of industrial transformation aimed at supporting the autonomy of the Senegalese Armed Forces”. He stresses that this project is only one link in a wider chain, while Senegal multiplies initiatives to structure a real defense industry.
Senegal: Towards a military and industrial sovereignty with a new defence factory
