Senegal makes use of vitality developments to spur infrastructure and tourism, Gambia is maximizing tourism income to bolster vitality tasks.
Throughout the MSGBC area (Mauritania, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Guinea-Conakry), the intersection of the tourism and vitality industries presents a novel alternative for sustainable growth.
Whereas Senegal is utilizing vitality developments to spur infrastructure growth and tourism, The Gambia is maximizing tourism income to bolster vitality tasks.
The event of Senegal’s vitality sector is respiratory new life into the nation’s tourism trade.
By infrastructure and vitality tasks, the nation is expediting the expansion and redevelopment of potential tourism locations. Such tasks embrace the Sandiara Particular Financial Zone (SEZ), which includes a gas-to-power and photo voltaic facility and is poised to energy tourism hotspots alongside the nation’s southern coast.
One such vacation spot is Mbodiene, a fishing village within the Thies area located simply 20km from the SEZ. Pierre Diouf, CEO of LFR Power, a outstanding actual property and vitality agency creating the gas-to-power facility within the SEZ, envisions the transformation of Mbodiene into a serious vacationer complicated.
“The actual property venture will include two 4- and 5-star accommodations with 500 rooms, 200 villas, a shopping mall and an amusement park. We’re at present within the first section of growth,” defined Diouf, including that, “Our goal is to contribute to the creation of a brand new financial hub within the Thies area and, in fact, to develop tourism in Senegal.”
This represents only one instance of the various potential tourism hotspots anticipated to learn from vitality developments in Senegal. At present, tourism represents the nation’s second-largest international alternate earner and is a serious driver of development and infrastructure growth. Because the nation’s electrification, industrialization and income technology expands on the again of first oil and gasoline manufacturing anticipated from the Sangomar and Better Tortue Ahmeyim fields this yr, the nation’s tourism sector is ready to witness unprecedented development on the again of vitality infrastructure integration.
Whereas Senegal focuses on harnessing its vitality sector to energy actual property and tourism growth, The Gambia takes an inverse strategy. On this semi-enclave nation bordered by Senegal, tourism performs a significant function in driving its financial system. Accounting for 20% of the nation’s GDP and using 19% of its inhabitants, tourism is a big contributor to The Gambia’s prosperity. The World Financial institution has acknowledged this and licensed a $68 million grant from the Worldwide Improvement Affiliation (IDA) to help the diversification and local weather resilience of the nation’s tourism sector.
The nation’s dedication to tourism-driven growth could also be seen in its efforts to construct institutional and legislative frameworks, develop entry to finance for tourism-related corporations, develop distant areas, and promote coastal sustainability. Along with financial advantages, the nation’s tourism sector presents a possibility for funding in vitality.
The Gambia intends to help vitality tasks that will enhance infrastructure and contribute to the nation’s total growth by utilizing tourism earnings. At present, the nation’s vitality trade is experiencing appreciable change, with initiatives to extend electrical energy supply and the reform of the utility company NAWEC underway coupled with a rising give attention to frontier oil exploration. As a comparatively untapped vitality market, The Gambia requires important capital to develop vitality infrastructure, discover untapped basins and create sturdy home vitality worth chains.
As such, its tourism trade may be leveraged to generate the income requires to stimulate vitality developments. Forthcoming occasions like Power Capital & Energy’s MSGBC Oil, Gasoline & Energy 2023 convention, which will probably be hosted in Nouakchott on November 21–22, present a wonderful alternative to encourage additional funding in each the tourism and vitality industries in Senegal and The Gambia.