By Portia Crowe and Libby George
(Reuters) -Senegal’s finance ministry told investors it will pay back its debts and continue its talks with the International Monetary Fund as the nation braces for a key credit rating decision from S&P Global later on Friday.
The Ministry of Finance and Budget, in a statement sent to investors on Thursday and seen by Reuters, said it was “resolutely committed to its dialogue” with the Fund.
“Senegal reiterates that it will continue to honor its obligations as they fall due and is progressing adequately on the implementation of its financing plan for 2026,” the statement read.
The finance ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The statement added that the government was pushing ahead with efforts to strengthen public finances by boosting revenue, managing expenditures and aligning budget execution with its 2025 targets.
By end-September, revenues excluding grants and current expenditures had reached 73% of targets, the ministry said.
The IMF, following its mission to Senegal earlier this month, said the “very high tax yield” assumed in Senegal’s revenue growth projections “poses a significant risk.”
The Fund suspended Senegal’s lending program last year after the then-new government flagged unreported debts that have since grown to more than $11 billion, leaving the country in a precarious financial situation with debt-to-GDP above 130%. Talks for a new lending programme with the Fund have been slow.
Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko said last weekend that the IMF wants the country to restructure its debt, which he fervently rejected.
(Reporting by Portia Crowe and Libby George, additional reporting by Robbie Corey-Boulet, writing by Colleen Goko, editing by Karin Strohecker)
