The World Bank has approved an additional $110 million in Program for Results financing for the Municipal and Agglomeration Support Program (PACASEN) in Senegal. This additional financing aims to scale up efforts to local governments and improve their management of public investments.
In addition to $50 million from the International Development Association, this financing includes contributions from several partners, including $33 million from the French Development Agency and $27 million from the Government of Senegal. The funding will support key intervention areas such as fiscal reforms, local government transparency, accountability, and performance-based financing. It also incorporates climate resilience into Senegal’s regulatory framework for local government investments, annual performance evaluation, and capacity building.
‘‘PACASEN has strengthened Senegal’s country systems by supporting decentralization. It doubled state transfers to all 601 local governments from 2018 to 2024 and improved the performance of 124 beneficiary local governments in investment planning, fiduciary management, safeguards, and citizen engagement. We are confident that this additional funding will build on these advances by promoting a regulatory framework to address climate change at the local level and guiding local governments in implementing Senegal's climate policies,” said Keiko Miwa, World Bank Country Director for Cabo Verde, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, and Senegal.
The additional financing aligns with the World Bank and the Senegalese government's strategic priorities in the urban sector. It addresses challenges related to future financing of climate-resilient investments by local governments while incentivizing them to participate in climate action and providing them with necessary capacities.
PACASEN is currently in its sixth year of implementation and its fourth cycle of transfers within Senegal's budgetary system. This two-year additional financing extends PACASEN's timeline until December 2026 and increases its original budget from $260 million to a total of $370 million.