Senegal’s government has reopened urgent negotiations with the International Monetary Fund as it races to avert a sovereign default, setting a June 30 deadline to reach an agreement, the programme Business Africa reported on Thursday. The West African nation, struggling under a massive debt load, has formed a new cabinet with the priority task of securing a programme from the Washington-based lender.

President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko came to power in 2024 championing economic sovereignty, transparent governance and institutional overhaul. But the fiscal realities of a heavy debt burden have quickly put their economic sovereignty agenda to the test, forcing the administration to reopen IMF negotiations.

Abdoulaye Ndiaye, an economist named Best Young African Economist at the Africa CEO Forum in Kigali, told the programme that three key reforms are required to stabilise the economy. Ndiaye argued that without timely measures, the country risks a much deeper crisis.