Autonomous Port of Dakar: Doune Pathé Mbengue unveils his transformation project to the supervisory authority

The Autonomous Port of Dakar (PAD) is the main operational and economic arm of the Ministry of Fisheries and Maritime Economy for implementing Senegal's port and logistics policy. It was in this capacity that Minister Amy Mara Dièye visited the new management team, headed by Doune Pathé Mbengue, on Wednesday, September 23rd. The purpose of the visit was to meet, listen to, and exchange ideas with senior management and staff.

"The Port occupies a special place in the blue economy."

Thus, the Director General of the Port Authority of Douala (PAD) reaffirmed his commitment to consolidating achievements while implementing structural changes to this national enterprise. According to Doune Pathé Mbengue, through this visit, the Minister understood that its success will not be achieved without an effective, efficient, and impactful contribution from this department, which is essential to the national economy. "The port occupies a special place in the blue economy, as you know. 80% of the Ministry's concerns are focused on the blue economy, in which the port plays a key role," he emphasized.

In this regard, Waly Diouf Bodiang's successor, in his welcoming remarks, asked the supervisory authority to support the general management so that the Port of Dakar can contribute to the country's economic development.

The main points of the project revealed

Finally, Doune Pathé Mbengue asked the Director of Strategies and Partnerships to present the main points of the ongoing plan. Here, Mamadou Ngary Bâ unveiled the ambition of the new management team, which aims not only to consolidate the achievements of this plan but also to bring about a systematic and significant transformation to the Senegalese port ecosystem.

Mr. Bâ also unveiled the key figures for the year 2025 achieved by the PAD. These are 29.66 million tons of goods, of which 20.03 million were unloaded and 9.63 million were loaded; 85.630 billion in revenue, of which 21.587 billion was operating profit.

"This visit is not simply a step in my institutional agenda; it reflects a commitment."

Following this detailed presentation, which focused on the President's transformation policy, the Minister reiterated the reasons for her visit to the new Director General and the port community. "It is with particular respect that I speak today on the occasion of my visit to the headquarters of the Autonomous Port of Dakar, a major infrastructure within our national economic, maritime, and logistics system. This visit is not simply a stop on my official agenda; it reflects a commitment: to meet with the women and men who keep our port community running smoothly every day, to listen, to understand, and to take action," stated Ms. Amy Mara Dièye.

She adds: “In a country where the vast majority of international trade is conducted by sea, the performance of our port system directly contributes to the competitiveness of our economy, the control of logistics costs, and the attractiveness of our territory. Our ambition must therefore be commensurate with this responsibility. Within the framework of the Senegal 2050 Vision, we must build a more efficient, more integrated, more competitive maritime economy that creates greater value and more jobs for our youth. This requires continuing the modernization of our infrastructure, improving the fluidity of operations, strengthening the digitalization of procedures, consolidating port security and safety, and developing a logistics chain capable of meeting the demands of contemporary trade.”

However, the Minister believes that port performance cannot be considered in isolation. "It must be part of a comprehensive vision of the maritime economy, linking port infrastructure, maritime transport, fishing, seafood processing, aquaculture, logistics, maritime services, and all activities related to the blue economy. It is precisely this integrated approach that we must promote. Our ambition is to make Senegal a true maritime and logistics hub of excellence in Africa, by fully leveraging our geographic location, our coastline, and the strength of our energy resources," the Minister explained from the outset.

“This ambition, however, requires clarity and responsibility. We must identify, without complacency, the constraints that affect the competitiveness of our port system: management, logistics, deadlines, coordination between the various stakeholders, space occupancy, quality of services, security of operations, and the integration of different modes of transport. Each of these constraints must be met with concrete, measurable, and port-related solutions,” insisted Amy Mara Dièye.

"The modernization of our port system must also be a modernization of skills."

The Minister of Fisheries and Maritime Economy also emphasized the human dimension of this transformation. For her, behind the infrastructure, the docks, the terminals, the equipment, and the ships, there are women and men. "The modernization of our port system must also be a modernization of skills. We must invest more in the training, qualifications, and professional integration of young people in maritime and port-related professions. The blue economy must not be just a strategic concept; it must become a comprehensive space of opportunities, income, innovation, and jobs, especially for our youth," the state official stated.

For her, no single actor can lead the transformation of our maritime system alone. "That is why I hope this visit will be a time for listening, dialogue, and collaboration. We are here to appreciate achievements but also to learn about the difficulties encountered on the ground, examine ongoing projects, and identify ways to accelerate their implementation. Our collective responsibility is to ensure that every investment made in the maritime sector generates more value for the national economy and more opportunities for our citizens," the Minister stated.

The supervisory authority also commended the commitment of the general management and all the staff of the Autonomous Port of Dakar, before encouraging them to continue the efforts undertaken and to integrate their actions into a permanent dynamic of performance, innovation and service to the national economy.

The Minister of Fisheries and Maritime Economy also had a guided tour of the port simulator room where the major project of the multifunctional port of Ndayane was presented, before concluding her visit at the PAD water area.