Luxembourg's development cooperation - Annual report 2015

Population 14,5 million
Surface area 196 723 km2
GNP per inhabitant (PPP in $) 2 188
Classification in HDI 170/188

Senegal has been chairing the ECOWAS for a year since May 2015. The priorities of the Senegalese chairmanship mainly relate to the economy and include:

• the full application of a joint external tariff (so far applied by 8 member countries out of 15) with the long-term aim of creating a free trade zone of 300 million consumers
• diplomatic efforts to facilitate the signature of the economic partnership agreement. 

On 15 October 2015, Senegal was elected with 187 votes as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for the 2016-2017 period. The country will be assuming this role for the third time in its history and will emphasise preventative diplomacy, while also introducing new working groups (Water-Peace-Security, Young People-Peace-Security and Health-Peace-Security). Senegal will also be the Vice-Chair for the “prevention of conflicts in West Africa” and “child protection in conflict periods and zones” working groups and will be the “penholder” for the situation in the Sahel.

With regard to development cooperation, the 11th partnership committee meeting was held on 2 September 2015 in Luxembourg in the presence of Minister for Cooperation and Humanitarian Action Romain Schneider and three Senegalese Ministers (the Minister of Economy, Finance and Planning, Amadou Ba, the Minister of Vocational Training, Learning and Craftsmanship, Mamadou Talla and the Minister of Hydraulics and Sanitation, Mansour Faye). Outside this ministerial exchange on development cooperation activities, meetings were held with the Foreign and European Affairs, Defence and Development Cooperation Committee of the Chamber of Deputies and with the representatives of Luxembourgish NGOs active in Senegal. As part of the diversification of relations between the two countries, very promising meetings also took place with Luxembourgish companies at the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce and with actors in the financial centre.