DAKAR — Former Senegalese President Macky Sall is scheduled to travel to Senegal on Friday, marking his first public appearance in the country since he left office. The trip comes as he actively campaigns for the position of United Nations secretary-general.
Sall continues to be a polarizing figure back home. His attempt to delay the 2024 presidential election sparked deadly protests before Senegal’s Constitutional Council stepped in and blocked the move.
Adding to the controversy, Senegal’s Court of Auditors concluded that his administration had underreported the country’s debt and deficit numbers, suggesting roughly $7 billion in undisclosed borrowing. That figure was later revised upward, with S&P Global Ratings estimating the hidden debt at approximately $13 billion as of last July — equivalent to about one quarter of Senegal’s $40 billion economy. Sall has denied any wrongdoing.
According to posts on X, Sall plans to meet with President Bassirou Diomaye Faye before departing Dakar. He described the visit as being “part of the consultations and visits I have undertaken in connection with my candidacy.”
He also expressed hope of “having the opportunity to return to Dakar on another occasion to meet with activists and supporters.” Sall currently resides in Morocco.
The United Nations is expected to select its 10th secretary-general this year, with the chosen candidate beginning a five-year term on January 1, 2027. Sall is one of five people who have put their names forward for the role.
Should he be selected, Sall would take over from Antonio Guterres and become only the third African to hold the secretary-general position, following Egypt’s Boutros Boutros-Ghali and Ghana’s Kofi Annan.
During his presidency, which ran from 2012 to 2024, Sall guided Senegal through its emergence as an oil- and gas-producing nation.
