During the plenary session devoted to the vote on the budget of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, MP Mbaye Dione called on the government to ensure industrial recovery and the empowerment of the national private sector.

The parliamentarian first recalled having drawn the minister's attention to the critical situation of local rice, with "hundreds of thousands of tons that were rotting in the valley".

He congratulated the minister on the measures taken, particularly the temporary ban on imports to allow for the depletion of national stocks. "The state demanded the purchase of locally produced rice before any new import authorizations. You have kept your promise," he said.

Mbaye Dione was pleased to see his colleagues emphasize the need for an industrialized Senegal to achieve emerging market status. He welcomed the substantial increase in the Ministry of Industry's budget, specifically earmarked for boosting production capacity. However, he believes the country must now take action on two key areas.

The MP denounced the state of many public industrial companies. "Some are bankrupt, others have been sold to foreign interests, and still others are unable to reach their cruising speed," he said.

“Senegal was a major exporter of phosphate. We have mining sites capable of reducing our trade deficit and supporting our industry, particularly in fertilizer production,” he added. He also advocated for the creation of a cashew processing plant in Casamance, in order to end the dominance of foreign intermediaries in this strategic sector.

For Mbaye Dione, industrialization will not be possible without a strong national private sector. "Development can only be driven by the private sector. If we regulate the entire value chain but local entrepreneurs remain on the sidelines, we will have failed," he declares.

The MP thus identified "a major obstacle: the absence of land titles, administrative burdens, and the impossibility for rural entrepreneurs to use their land as collateral."

He points out that in special economic zones, the majority of established industries are multinationals, because Senegalese nationals lack the necessary capital. He argues: "As long as Senegalese investors do not have land titles or usable leases, they will not be able to raise funds. Successive administrations have been too slow in issuing these titles."

He urges a distinction to be made between genuinely Senegalese companies and those that merely operate under franchise agreements for foreign brands. "It's not the nationality of the brand that matters, but that of the capital," he concludes.