The Housing Bank of Senegal (BHS) has just taken a historic step in its social mission by launching the Special Housing Savings Plan (PEL Spécial). The official launch ceremony for this new product, which opens the doors of homeownership to Senegal's informal sector, was held on Tuesday, February 3, 2026, at the Sandaga Market (the relocation site for Sandaga Market vendors) in Dakar. A partnership agreement was also signed between the BHS and the Social Housing Fund (FHS) on the sidelines of this important meeting, which was chaired by the Secretary of State for Urban Planning and Housing, Mr. Momath Talla Ndao.

"Special PEL": a new product distinguished by its flexibility and accessibility

Traditionally facing difficulties in demonstrating regular income, independent traders, artisans, and entrepreneurs now have a concrete tool to access homeownership throughout Senegal. The PEL (special) transforms daily savings into collateral to eventually obtain real estate financing.

This is a new product distinguished by its flexibility and accessibility. It targets traders, artisans, and freelancers, among others, who operate in the informal sector. With flexible monthly or monthly deposits (one or more installments) and a savings term of 24 to 48 months, the "Special Home Savings Plan" (PEL Spécial) provides preferential access to real estate financing at the end of the contract. It offers several deposit methods: cash, bank transfers, or via mobile money operators.

"The Special Home Savings Plan is an inclusive banking solution."

According to the Director General of the Housing Bank of Senegal (BHS), access to housing remains a major challenge in Senegal. "The informal sector represents a significant portion of the working population but often remains outside the traditional banking system," noted Ms. Astou Rose Gaye.

Faced with this challenge, the head of BHS maintains that the "Special Home Savings Plan" is an inclusive banking solution. "The major innovation lies in the paradigm shift in risk analysis: we no longer judge solvency based on non-existent administrative documents, but on the demonstrated capacity for regular savings during the contractual period," she emphasized.

"The FHS is fully part of this dynamic."

The Social Housing Fund (FHS) aims to facilitate access to decent housing for low- and middle-income populations through innovative financial mechanisms, loan guarantees, and subsidies, while supporting sustainable construction and social diversity. In this regard, its administrator, Mr. Ibrahima Diop, stated that this Special Housing Savings Plan (PEL Spécial) represents "a vision of genuine financial inclusion, restored dignity, and above all, equitable access to the fundamental right to housing." According to him, the FHS is fully aligned with this objective.

“We have decided to support this program through the signing of a strategic agreement with BHS. In concrete terms, FHS will make the Sen Ker platform available to facilitate registration, transparency of processes and monitoring of beneficiaries. We will also mobilize our traditional mechanisms, in particular guarantee instruments, in order to secure financing and broaden access to credit for future buyers,” explained Mr. Ibrahima Diop.

Through this fruitful partnership, the FHS administrator indicates that his ambition is to "reduce the barrier of initial investment, secure pathways to housing and accelerate the inclusion of the informal sector in the formal housing economy".

"This tool will help break the glass ceiling of access to property for those in the informal sector."

The Secretary of State for Urban Planning and Housing, for his part, indicated that this BHS project fits perfectly within the 2050 Agenda, which places housing among the national priorities. "With its 45 years of expertise in real estate financing, BHS is offering us an innovative program called the 'Special Housing Savings Plan.' This tool will break the glass ceiling of homeownership for those in the informal sector, particularly traders, artisans, drivers, and other self-employed workers," stated Mr. Momath Talla Ndao.

For him, this plan undoubtedly constitutes "a lever for financial and social inclusion, which will take charge of an important link in the target of our housing access policy, in particular the solvency of the non-salaried social demand".

In this regard, the state authority congratulated the Director General, Ms. Astou Rose Gaye, for the excellent work she is doing at the head of BHS, but especially for this innovation and this willingness to adapt its offers to its different customer categories.

The meeting also noted the presence of Mr. Mamadou Diallo, Chairman of the Board of Directors of BHS; Mr. El Hadj Sam Niang, head of the Sandaga market; actors from the informal sector; among others.