Senegal's Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko announced on Friday at a youth rally that government ministers are banned from all non-essential foreign travel. This move comes in response to a sharp rise in oil prices due to the conflict in Iran, with the current cost per barrel approaching double the budgeted amount. Sonko has postponed his own planned trips to Niger, Spain, and France as part of these restrictions, and stated that the mines minister will announce further measures to curb government spending in the coming week.
Senegal's action is the latest response from the African continent to the oil price increase, which has seen other countries reducing fuel levies and rationing electricity. In his speech, Sonko emphasized that he did not want to "frighten" the audience but aimed to give them a "sense of this world, which is a difficult world," while praising Senegalese resilience despite the hardships.
Despite a fledgling oil and gas industry, Senegal relies heavily on fuel imports. Last year, the International Monetary Fund described the economy as "robust" with nearly 8% growth and low inflation, but public debt stands at over 130% of GDP. Sonko, installed as prime minister two years ago, blamed the previous government for saddling his administration with this debt, which he said has made dealing with the oil price situation even more challenging.
Elsewhere in Africa, the rising oil price has prompted various countermeasures: South Africa's government reduced the tax on petrol to limit fuel cost increases, fuel shortages in Ethiopia have forced some government institutions to send employees on annual leave, South Sudan has started rationing electricity in its capital Juba, and Zimbabwe is increasing the ethanol content in its petrol.
The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf, resulting from the US-Israeli war on Iran, has also restricted fertilizer supply globally. The International Rescue Committee warned that this poses a "food security timebomb," particularly for East Africa, which relies on fertilizer imports from the Middle East.
Source: www.bbc.com