Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games: Security forces test their strategy against the threat

With just weeks to go before the opening of the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games (YOG), Senegal is finalizing its security arrangements. On Wednesday, October 7, the Defense and Security Forces conducted a certification exercise at the Azalaï Hotel in Dakar. This full-scale simulation was designed to test their ability to respond to a threat that could disrupt one of the largest sporting events ever held on the continent. To test this capability, the National Coordination Committee for YOG Security (CNS-JOJ) mobilized the entire security chain. Police, gendarmerie, army, firefighters, medical units, and civil administrations all participated in the exercise, which was chaired by the Minister of the Interior and Public Security, Mouhamadou Makhtar Cissé.

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The scenario chosen for this final preparation phase is a hostage situation in a local hotel. Faced with this simulated situation, the various components of the emergency response system must react, share information, coordinate interventions, and deploy the appropriate units. The objective is to verify, under near-real-life conditions, the ability of the forces to act together in the face of a threat.

For the Minister of the Interior, this exercise comes after several stages of preparation. “The Youth Olympic Games open in exactly three weeks in Dakar. Senegal will host them, as the saying goes, and Africa will celebrate. So today, we were conducting a full-scale exercise to test our ability to respond to threats, to the various threats that can negatively impact such events here or anywhere else in the world. Senegal cannot be an exception, and so we have prepared accordingly,” declared Mouhamadou Makhtar Cissé.

The security plan is not solely based on the operations conducted this Wednesday. The minister points out that preparations began well before this certification phase. In 2025, the President of the Republic issued a decree establishing the National Security Council for the Youth Olympic Games, placed under the coordination of the Minister of the Interior. This body's role included coordinating the various forces involved in securing the event. For Mouhamadou Makhtar Cissé, today's exercise allows for verification of the results of planning work carried out over several months. "And it is in this capacity that I am here to work on the coordination of all the forces, and my first words, naturally, after thanking you for your presence, are to thank all the forces involved in this morning's exercise. The police, the gendarmerie, but also the army, both land and air force, because you saw them all operating together." "And so this proves that security is a matter for all forces," he explained.

The Minister of the Interior thus emphasized the complementarity between the units. He refused to reduce the operation to a mere addition of resources: "As Colonel Diack, whom I congratulate, and Commissioner Tendeng, who briefed us at the marquee, said earlier, this is not an addition of forces, but an intelligent integration with a well-developed strategy. And at the heart of this is masterful planning that has led to this final exercise, which is the certification exercise."

Before this final stage, the forces had already faced several scenarios. Tabletop exercises initially allowed for testing procedures and decision-making mechanisms. Specific exercises were then conducted at the level of the different forces, before an integration phase bringing together all participants. Wednesday's exercise was therefore designed to verify the coherence of this preparation in an operational situation. From the operations coordination center to the units deployed at the various sites, the chain of command was engaged. The competition venues, accommodations, and transportation areas are among the spaces identified in the overall security plan.

In addition to these forces, there are those responsible for rescue and victim care. Firefighters, medical units, and various civil administrations have also been integrated into the preparation. "Before this certification exercise, which concludes the drills, all that remains is to confront the threat, hoping that we will be a deterrent so that it does not materialize. There have been tabletop tests, planning of several exercises at the level of each force, but also today there is the integration of all the defense and security forces, as well as firefighters for rescue, medical units, civil administrations; all state services have been involved for the success of this exercise," the minister explained.

For Mouhamadou Makhtar Cissé, this logic is at the heart of the Youth Olympic Games security strategy. He believes that the best response to a threat also involves the ability to convey that the forces are prepared to intervene. "We demonstrate force so that we don't have to use it. That's the primary principle of deterrence," he stated.

A major event, the Youth Olympic Games will bring an exceptional concentration of people to Dakar. Athletes, official delegations, coaches, members of sports organizations, visitors, and the general public will all have to coexist with the constraints related to organizing the event. On this point, the Minister of the Interior also wants to prepare Senegalese citizens for the changes the Games could bring to their daily lives. The movement of people and vehicles could be disrupted in certain areas. "Those who come to Dakar must feel safe. We are ready to welcome the athletes and official delegations safely, but also to continue ensuring the safety of the Senegalese population because that is our primary mission. The Youth Olympic Games will not make us forget. We must continue this work of ensuring security," assured Mouhamadou Makhtar Cissé.

The authorities also intend to maintain their usual public safety and security missions during the competition. "So it will be a matter of collective security. And the message I am sending to all Senegalese is that every Senegalese has a role to play. I also call on them to be a little more patient and resilient because, inevitably, there will be some inconveniences. When you organize an event of this scale, there will be constraints related to traffic, constraints related to the flow of people and vehicles. And so, inevitably, there will be some inconveniences that will have to be tolerated in order to make this major event a success," the minister warned.