SENEGAL: Spanish Tourists Ambushed, Robbed And Raped In Senegal

Bandits attacked a group of Spanish tourists in Senegal’s restive region of Casamance and raped two women before making off with thousands of euros in cash, a Senegalese army colonel said on Friday.

The attack occurred on Thursday near the small town of Diouloulou in the southern Casamance region, one of the poorest in Senegal though popular with tourists for its tropical forests and sandy beaches.

The Spanish group was travelling in a hired vehicle with a Senegalese driver. An armed band stopped and hijacked their car, then seized over 4,000 euros ($4,971.20) in cash and raped two women on the roadside before fleeing, according to the colonel, speaking on condition of anonymity.

It’s four Spanish tourists. There is one man and three women driven by a Senegalese driver. They were abducted, raped and then released by an armed group on the Diouloulou-Kataba axis, near the village of Karonge.

It’s four Spanish tourists. There is one man and three women driven by a Senegalese driver. They were abducted, raped and then released by an armed group on the Diouloulou-Kataba axis, near the village of Karongé.

The Senegalese army deployed in the area to find the attackers.

The Spanish Embassy in Senegal confirmed that four tourists were assaulted in Casamance but did not comment on the rape report.

Spain’s Foreign Ministry said it was offering consular assistance to a group of Spanish nationals in Senegal.

It was the second violent incident in Casamance this year, raising concerns that worsening security there might damage one of Senegal’s main tourist attractions.

Earlier this month, unidentified gunmen in Casamance attacked a group of civilians searching for firewood, killing 14 and wounding several others.

The motives for the shooting remain unknown, and the army has since been deployed into the area to investigate.

Meanwhile, Senegal’s criminal court sentenced 13 people to prison for attempting to establish a homegrown cell modelled after Boko Haram in the West Africa country.

One of those jailed by the Dakar court on Thursday was Makhtar Diokhane, described as the ringleader of the group. He was handed a 20-year prison term.

The court was very heavy handed in sentencing our client and we are going to appeal, Diokane’s lawyer Alassane Cisse said.

Fourteen people, including two of Diokhane’s wives, were acquitted.

About 30 Senegalese were put on trial in April for their suspected involvement in the cell after some spent time in Nigeria with the armed group Boko Haram.

Attacks involving Boko Haram have displaced more than 1.8 million Nigerians in the country’s predominantly agricultural northeast over the last 10 years. An estimated 20,000 people have been killed.

Twenty-nine other suspects, three of them women, were accused of criminal conspiracy related to financing an armed group, money-laundering, and acts of terrorism.

The public prosecutor had requested life sentences for 11 of the accused, and a 30-year prison term for Alioune Ndao a popular imam from the town of Kaolack in central Senegal who was accused of acting as a coordinator. He received a suspended one-month sentence.

Most were arrested in 2015 in Senegal. Prosecutors said was their plan was to foment violence in neighbouring countries as well.

Senegal has so far escaped the al-Qaeda-linked insurgency that has destabilised neighbouring Mali along with attacks on other West African nations including Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast.

But Dakar has stepped up security outside hotels and publics buildings.


Tourism Observer

SENEGAMBIA: Tourism In Senegal Contributes 300 Billion Francs To The Economy

A recent report by the hotel association Jovago estimated that tourism in Senegal contributes to the local economy 300 billion CFA francs (EUR 453.5 million), according to its authors, an indication of the sector’s improving condition.

Tourism in Senegal is doing well according to the figures in the report, said Guillaume Pepin the general manager of the association.

The objective of this report is to make reliable and useful data available to journalists and professionals in the tourism and hospitality industries, explained the authors in the research.

“The study offers a positive portrayal of Senegal’s tourism placing it on the top of West African countries,” said Mr. Pepin.

“A single tourist spends EUR400 on average when visiting Senegal and the tourism sector currently earns around 300 billion CFA francs, ” he added.

Over the period 2013-2014, Senegal benefited from the average hotel occupancy rate of 35% across the country, with 3.5 days average stay compared to the 20% seen in other countries, according to Mr. Pepin, citing data of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

“Dakar holds 51% of the accommodation capacity compared to 20% for the Petite-Côte (small coast) and the Sine Saloum, 14% for Casamance and 15% for other areas of the country,” he noted.

The driving force behind Dakar’s tourism lies in the fact that the Senegalese capital is where business and leisure tourism meet. The area notably has several meeting and conference venues as well as beaches and historic sites.

However, it does give rise to certain challenges to be overcome for tourism to keep its promise, namely more than 50 thousand jobs in the current year according to Mr. Pepin.

Among these challenges are the lack of skilled labor in the hospitality and tourism sector, the lack of tour guides with extensive knowledge of Senegal’s history, the lack of infrastructure, especially in the interior of the country, the lack of promotion of Senegal as a travel destination, and the Senegalese people’s own lack of awareness when it comes to their tourist sites/attractions.

According to the head of the Jovago association, stakeholders should also focus on the 7 Senegalese sites included on the UNESCO’s heritage list to further promote tourism in Senegal.

The Stone Circles of Senegambia (Kaolack), the Saloum Delta’s national park, Gorée Island (Dakar), the Bassari country with its Bassari cultural landscapes, peul and Bedik, the National Bird Park in Djoudj and the Niokolo-Koba National Park are all inscribed on the list.

The development of nature tourism in Casamance, would bring a lot more to the Senegalese economy, if the area had a better equipped healthcare infrastructure, reported the Jovago officials.

They also believe that Senegal can count on e-tourism, since 7.5 million people have access to the Internet, as well as over 50% of the hotels, highlights the report, whereby efforts are needed as only 11% of transactions are made online, compared to 98% of payments made at the hotel.