Press releases - 2026 April 20
It was a diplomatic ballet, as intense as it was symbolic, that unfolded in the corridors of the International Dakar Forum on Peace and Security in Africa. In the span of a single day, the President of the Republic, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, received, on the sidelines of the 10th edition of the Forum, Japan’s Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Secretary-General of the Francophonie, Tunisia’s Foreign Minister, and the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia.
The Head of State first received Yohei Onishi, who was leading a delegation from a country that has been a partner of the Forum since its inception. The discussions provided an opportunity to commend Japan’s consistent commitment to this major pan-African gathering. President Faye and his counterpart highlighted the quality of bilateral cooperation and called for its strengthening, particularly in areas covered by TICAD, in the service of peace, security, and sustainable development in Africa.
Subsequently, the President of the Republic met with Louise Mushikiwabo, Secretary-General of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie. The two leaders praised the exemplary relationship between the OIF and Senegal, a founding country of the Francophonie and a committed actor in its vitality.
Extending the Forum’s discussions, their talks focused on major contemporary challenges: the weakening of multilateralism, security crises, and internal issues within the Organization. As the 20th Francophonie Summit, scheduled for November 2026 in Cambodia, approaches, Senegal reaffirmed its determination to play a full role, remaining faithful to the legacy of Léopold Sédar Senghor and to his conviction that the Francophonie remains a privileged space for solidarity, cultural dialogue, and collective action in the service of peace.
The President of the Republic also granted an audience to Mohamed Ali Nafti, Tunisia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Migration, and Tunisians Abroad. The two officials reflected on the deep historical ties between Senegal and Tunisia, forged through long-standing political, cultural, and human exchanges between their peoples.
They called for strengthened bilateral cooperation and the consolidation of the special partnership that characterizes relations between Dakar and Tunis, for the benefit of their populations and in the service of a more integrated Africa.
Finally, at the CICAD, the Head of State received Walid bin Abdulkarim Al Khereiji, Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The meeting reaffirmed the privileged nature of relations between the two countries, rooted in a longstanding spiritual fraternity and sustained high-level political dialogue.
Security concerns, at the heart of the Forum, took on particular significance during this exchange, as Saudi Arabia itself faces, albeit indirectly, the repercussions of a conflict affecting its immediate neighborhood. President Faye reiterated Senegal’s hope for the swift opening of a path toward a peaceful and lasting resolution of this crisis.
Both parties also agreed on the need to deepen and broaden their bilateral cooperation for the mutual benefit of their peoples.
These successive meetings, held on the sidelines of a Forum celebrating its tenth anniversary, illustrate Senegal’s central role on the African and international diplomatic stage today. Above all, they confirm President Bassirou Diomaye Faye’s commitment to transforming this gathering in Diamniadio into a true laboratory for solutions promoting peace, stability, and the development of the continent.