Senegal is preparing to host Africa’s first Olympic event, the Dakar Youth Olympics, but for many residents, the excitement is overshadowed by rising living costs and economic hardships.
Some say preparations for the Games have disrupted their livelihoods, while others question whether the money being spent could have been used to address more pressing needs.
Mamadou Wadji inherited his father’s shoemaking shop in Dakar’s working-class Medina neighborhood.
In September, authorities evicted him to make way for a stadium expansion for the 2026 Youth Olympics.
Wadji says he and other artisans were moved into an unfinished school, tucked behind a neighborhood market.
“We, the general population, and especially those of us in the informal sector, should have been the first to benefit from it, unfortunately that has not been the case,” he said.
Senegalese authorities and Olympic officials say the event offers young people opportunities through a learning academy and volunteer program.
The Dakar Youth Olympics are the first Olympic event to be held in Africa.About 2,700 athletes are competing in Dakar and nearby cities. The Games run through Nov. 13.
But many young Senegalese are focused on a more immediate challenge: earning barely enough to get by as frustration grows over the country’s worsening cost-of-living crisis.
Around 75% of Senegal’s population is under 35, according to the country’s national statistics agency.Youth unemployment stands at about 23% and most of those who do have a job work in the informal sector.
Momar Assane Diouf, a 33-year-old entrepreneur who juggles several jobs to support his family, believes Olympic spending could do more to help ordinary Senegalese people.
“These expenses are neither mandatory nor essential for the Senegalese people, who believe these funds could have been better spent elsewhere, for instance, on lowering the cost of living or boosting the purchasing power of the average citizen,” Diouf said.
The Senegalese government has committed 36 billion CFA francs ($60 million) to organizing the Games, including 11.3 billion CFA francs ($19 million) for renovations of sports venues
Senegal’s debt crisis has left little money to help families facing rising costs.
