Unity is strength: How Digital Senegal is shaping the future

'Alone, it was difficult to make progress, just as you cannot clap with one hand,' says Mohsen Chirara, chairman of the Board of Directors of Digital Senegal and chief executive officer of ARC Group, a leading Internet service provider and solutions integrator.

This vision is shared by Joëlle Sow, a board member at Digital Senegal, and an expert in leadership, e-coaching, and digital transformation. 'It is thanks to this collective formed by our members that we will be stronger in achieving our goals.'

Digital Senegal's goal is clear: to create a coalition to address major digitalization challenges by pooling local expertise to capture content and market opportunities.

Digital Senegal positions local digital companies as key players. One of its most significant achievements is the establishment of a digital platform that:

• Maps the main actors in Senegal's digital and innovation ecosystem;

• Lists support mechanisms for digital and innovation project leaders;

• Provides access to training;

• Offers information and news; and

• Enables members of Senegal's digital community to connect and exchange.

'By bringing these companies together, Digital Senegal gives them the opportunity to address the challenges raised by the State, which would be difficult to achieve individually. Membership in Digital Senegal therefore opens doors to markets, particularly public ones, that would otherwise be inaccessible,' says Fatimata Ba, a Digital Senegal board member.

To date, the online directory (https://www.digitalsenegal.org) has mapped over 220 start-ups and digital companies across Senegal.

Moustapha Diop is the CEO of SOLID, an IT services company founded in 2005.

'There were State markets that were hardly accessible to local digital start-ups and SMEs and naturally went to multinationals and companies affiliated with large foreign groups. We have been trying to organize ourselves to find a solution for a long time.'

For members, joining Digital Senegal represents much more than a professional body. It's a dynamic community whose members share expertise.

'For us, it is entirely natural to form larger groups,' said Henry Ousmane Gueye, co-founder and CEO of Eyone Médical. 'On certain major issues, it is in the country's interest for several of us to work together.'

'The idea is to strengthen the community, to make each other stronger in order to capture more markets, for the benefit of all," he added.

Digital Senegal positions itself as a key player in achieving Senegal's New Technological Deal - goals to digitalize administrative procedures, to innovate, and to develop value-added digital products and services.

Digital Senegal shows the strength of a community that understands that unity is essential to thrive in a constantly evolving digital world. Just as the internet transcends borders, Digital Senegal links national digital actors as well as diaspora talent.

Through this cooperative, the State of Senegal has a single point of contact and access to an extensive network of world-class national expertise to meet its digital needs.

This vast network allows the community to share much more than their technical skills and tools: it fosters a shared vision for Senegal's digital development, step by step, in a spirit of collaboration.

Digital Senegal was developed with the support of the West Africa Competitiveness Support Program - Senegal Component (PACAO-Senegal), implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC), a programme funded by the European union (EU).