The global context in which tourism operates is unique. It is subject to climate uncertainties, environmental degradation, health crises, and various security challenges. Despite this, tourism has become one of the key sectors of the economy in many countries. A sector potentially supported by continuous growth and rapid development, tourism has risen to the rank of one of the world’s leading industries.

According to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), the tourism sector employed over 24 million people in Africa in 2019. In July 2020, the African Union estimated that the continent had lost nearly $55 billion in tourism-related revenues and two million jobs in just the first three months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund forecasted a 12% decline in the real GDP of African economies dependent on tourism for the same year.

In Senegal, tourism is a priority sector for the country’s socioeconomic development and represents the second-largest source of foreign exchange after fishing (MTTA, 2019). It thus offers a real opportunity for economies worldwide, including Senegal’s, where it is driven by a marketing approach focused on “Destination Senegal.”

This is why the Adjusted and Accelerated Priority Action Plan (PAP 3A) for economic recovery, as part of the continuation of the Emerging Senegal Plan (PSE), aims to make Senegal a leading tourist destination and to turn the sector into a driver of economic, social, and territorial development. This should promote, among other things, the development of integrated tourism hubs, the enhancement of coastal tourism sites, and the growth of sustainable tourism through the design and promotion of ecotourism, cultural, religious, and business tourism products.