Mentorship, whether individual or institutional, has been a long-term driver of success because of its role in facilitating knowledge transfer and minimizing trial and errors. In this vein, low-income economies striving to acquire a middle-income status may learn a lot from the experience of peer countries that have accomplished the same feat as this is a cost-effective route to sharing knowledge, this was the submission of brainstorming participants at the headquarters of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington, D.C recently.
A three-day peer-to-peer exchange themed “Transforming Senegal into an Emerging Economy” was organized by the IMF and the Senegalese authorities bringing together senior officials from Cape Verde, Mauritius, and Seychelles to interact with a delegation from Senegal in person and via teleconference. The participants agreed that peer learning offers untapped potential to help establish reforms in their countries.
Senegal can break free
The sessions were aimed at supporting the Senegalese authorities in reforms needed for the success of their new development strategy, the “Plan Sénégal Emergent.” The plan, which is designed to help Senegal exit the trap of low growth and high poverty of recent years while transforming it to an emerging economy within the next two decades, had already received the blessings of the IMF last month.
The plan is structured around several pillars including; growth through transformation and diversification; human development and social protection; and better governance, peace, and security; it is designed to establish reforms that will unlock inclusive growth. Additionally, it seeks to scale up all forms of investment including public and private, domestic and foreign investments in order to fund growth enhancing projects, infrastructure, and develop human. The desired net effect is that Senegal transits to a middle-income status within the lifespan of the current generation.
Priority areas of the plan include the delivery of efficient public services, improving the impact of government spending through public financial management reforms, containing public consumption to generate the fiscal space for investment, and strengthening social safety nets.
This is achievable
According to the IMF, between 1990 and 2013, about 40 countries across the world have achieved average growth in real per capita GDP of 5 percent or more based on purchasing power parity. International experience suggests that Senegal can be even more ambitious and lift its growth rate to 7 percent in the medium term, driven by domestic reforms and foreign investment-generated exports.
“Although not all countries succeeded in all reforms, countries that Senegal could emulate include India, Guyana, and Sri Lanka. African ‘lion’ emerging economies, such as Cape Verde, Mauritius, and Uganda, have also begun the journey already traveled by Asian ‘tiger’ economies to move from low-income to middle-income emerging market status,” a statement from the IMF reads.
The focus must now be on execution as a blueprint has, more or less, been constructed.
“Our delegation is definitely strongly encouraged by this meeting. We plan to respond favorably by strengthening the dialogue internally and developing South-South cooperation, especially with peer countries. We were delighted by the possibility offered by the Institute for Capacity Development to have training for Senegalese in areas key for our reforms. We particularly appreciate the possibility of integrating in these workshops peers from countries with experience of interest to Senegal,” remarked Pierre Ndiaye of the Senegalese Ministry of Economy and Finance.
By Emmanuel Iruobe
