Senegal Country Climate and Development Report

Climate change is challenging Senegal’s development aspirations

Despite emerging as one of the fastest growing economies in SSA over the past decade thanks to enhanced international competitiveness and favorable external conditions, Senegal has seen limited progress towards achieving inclusive growth as economic performance remained characterized by a slow pace of poverty reduction and persistent inequalities.

Rising uncertainty, overlapping crises, and exposure to climate risks accentuate existing vulnerabilities and threaten the achievement of sustainable social and economic development. External shocks and rising global uncertainties weigh heavily on growth prospects. Senegal’s exposure to external shocks revealed the persistence of underlying key constraints to achieving productive, sustainable, and inclusive growth.

Senegal’s coastal exposure and reliance on natural resources for economic activities, jobs, and livelihoods - because of slow structural transformation of its economy - make the country particularly vulnerable to climate change.

Climate inaction is costly while climate action will bring benefits

The CCDR recommends several measures to accelerate climate action and development across natural, built, and human capitals and facilitate the energy transition. The financing requirements of climate action as evaluated for this CCDR are relatively small compared to Senegal’s economy, and more importantly, they are expected to bring significant benefits over time, beyond climate adaptation and mitigation.

The energy transition provides an opportunity to meet both development and climate objectives, exceeding NDC targets and putting the country well on track for net zero by 2050. However, significant risks remain, linked to delays in the deployment of, and financing availability for, renewable energy generation and domestic gas. Senegal’s formidable renewable energy potential (chiefly around solar) offers the lowest cost generation option to meet rising energy demand while accelerating decarbonization. At term, the country could play a leading role in decarbonizing the region through export opportunities and bolster resilience across the regional grid. In the short term, given constraints to the fast deployment of renewables, the transitional use of domestic gas will help phase out expensive and high-emitting coal and HFO generation, while balancing the electricity system and lowering the cost of electricity.

Adaptation priorities identified in this CCDR focus on no-regret development interventions, which climate change only makes more critical. They essentially consist of delivering better development through investments that are already urgently needed, and in ensuring that these are rendered resilient under a wide range of possible climate change impacts for Senegal. Improved natural resource management is a priority for resilient economic activities, jobs, and livelihoods.

Investing in sustainable cities will drive economic growth while increasing resilience and reducing climate impact.

Climate financing needs are colossal, much higher than current levels of climate-related investments and financial flows. Bridging the gap will require the active engagement of both public and private sectors to mobilize resources at scale and orient investment and consumption decisions towards climate-compatible outcomes. A healthy private sector that invests in climate-resilient solutions and promotes efficient use of resources is indispensable for climate action to take place at the pace and scale needed. The CCDR identifies several areas where the government can act as an enabler by providing incentives (for example, aligning carbon prices), strengthening the domestic financial sector, tapping into DRF, and piloting innovative instruments to mobilize additional resources (for example, sustainability‑linked bonds and loans).