As Senegal pursues its ambitions for industrial development and the energy transition, Africa Climate Insights (ACI), the Consortium of Francophone Journalists for a Just Energy Transition in Senegal (CJF-TEJ), and the Association of Journalists for Transparency in Extractive Resources and Environmental Protection (AJTREPE) are bringing together journalists, digital content creators, experts, policymakers and private sector representatives to foster a more informed debate on the opportunities and challenges of green industrialisation.
Industrialisation is expected to play a central role in Senegal’s economic development ambitions. At the same time, issues relating to the energy transition, business competitiveness, job creation and climate resilience are becoming increasingly prominent in public policy and development strategies.
Against this backdrop, an important question is emerging: How can industrial development be advanced while reducing its negative environmental impact and creating greater economic value?
Although green industrialisation is attracting growing interest, the concept remains relatively unfamiliar to the general public and is still insufficiently documented. Yet several initiatives are already underway in Senegal, including the Green Economic Zones (GEZs), supported by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), alongside programmes implemented by partners of the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP), multilateral development banks and private investors.
These initiatives reflect a growing commitment to making green industrialisation a driver of sustainable economic growth, job creation and competitiveness. They deserve to be better understood, better documented and more prominently featured in public debate in order to foster a shared understanding of the issues at stake and support the evolution of more sustainable industrial practices.
With this objective in mind, Africa Climate Insights (ACI), in partnership with the Consortium of Francophone Journalists for a Just Energy Transition in Senegal (CJF-TEJ) and AJTREPE, is organising three field visits in July 2026, followed by a national roundtable, to promote a better understanding of the opportunities and challenges associated with green industrialisation in Senegal.
Green industrialisation holds extraordinary potential for economic growth and job creation. At a time when our governments are striving to create opportunities for young people, renewable energy, sustainable mobility, and the recovery of waste and wastewater can generate new value chains while providing practical solutions to this challenge. It is our collective responsibility to raise awareness among policymakers, the private sector and society as a whole.
— Lamine Cissé, Country Manager, Africa Climate Foundation
Building Understanding Through Field Visits
Ten journalists will take part in a series of field visits to SOCOFEL and the Taiba N’Diaye Wind Farm. The objective is to provide them with first-hand exposure to concrete initiatives in energy efficiency and renewable energy generation, enabling them to better understand how these initiatives contribute to business competitiveness and the promotion of green industrialisation in Senegal.
Through discussions with site managers, technical teams and experts involved in these projects, participants will gain a deeper understanding of on-the-ground realities, the progress achieved, and the challenges faced by industrial stakeholders as they transition towards more sustainable production models.
By prioritising direct observation and dialogue with practitioners, these visits aim to enrich the quality of media coverage and encourage reporting grounded in practical experience rather than purely theoretical perspectives.
The first field visit has already highlighted the value of this immersive approach. Reflecting on the experience, one participating journalist shared:
“By the end of the visit, we were able to appreciate the importance of renewable energy—particularly solar power—in the agri-food production chain. The use of this clean energy offers significant benefits for both producers and those involved in marketing agricultural products. Senegal needs to scale up this type of initiative to strengthen food security and help improve its trade balance.”
— Abdourahmane Diallo, Journalist
Turning Field Observations into National Dialogue
The lessons drawn from the field visits will feed into a national roundtable bringing together experts, government representatives, private sector actors, researchers, civil society organisations, technical and financial partners, and media professionals.
The roundtable will provide a platform to reflect on the experiences observed in the field, examine the opportunities that green industrialisation presents for Senegal’s economic development, and discuss the conditions needed to accelerate its deployment.
Discussions will focus on the links between industrialisation, competitiveness, the energy transition, innovation and climate resilience, while highlighting the challenges that still need to be addressed to support this transformation.
By bringing together policymakers, experts, businesses and the media around concrete experiences, the roundtable will help strengthen collective understanding of these issues and contribute to a more informed public debate.
Better Documenting Senegal’s Emerging Green Industrial Transition
The field visits and the national roundtable are part of a broader initiative to raise awareness of green industrialisation in Senegal. By enabling journalists and digital content creators to observe concrete initiatives first-hand before engaging with a wide range of stakeholders during the national roundtable, Africa Climate Insights (ACI), the Consortium of Francophone Journalists for a Just Energy Transition in Senegal (CJF-TEJ), and the Association of Journalists for Transparency in Extractive Resources and Environmental Protection (AJTREPE) aim to contribute to a better understanding of the ongoing transition and to foster a public debate grounded in facts and reliable information.
