As part of the trip, a meeting was held with the Minister of Youth Affairs of Senegal, Pape Malik Ndour. An agreement to involve deputies of the Parliament of Senegal (National Assembly) to the activities the International Project Congress was reached. Minister Ndour also expressed his readiness to personally join the IPC in order to draw on the experience of colleagues from other countries to develop entrepreneurship and solve the problem of unemployment.
IPC Secretary Ilya Lisnyak also met with Khadim Diop, President of the Senegalese National Youth Council. The association was created in 1954 (even before Senegal gained independence), now more than 17,000 activists operate throughout Senegal under its leadership. This is the main youth organization of the country, working with the support of the President. As a result of the meeting in the Council building, Khadim Diop became a participant of the IPC.
In addition, a meeting was held at the Press House with leaders of the Senegalese Convention of Young Reporters. The leadership of the Convention expressed its desire to take part in the April SputnikPro master class for journalists from francophone African countries, which will be organized by the International News Agency Russia Today and the International Project Congress. Their own experience in developing the skills of regional journalists will also be offered to colleagues from other African countries. As a result of the meeting, Migui Marame Ndiaye, President of the Senegalese Convention of Young Reporters, and Mamadou Diagne, partnership officer, joined the IPC.
The IPC Secretariat also got acquainted with the working mechanism of the FODEM foundation and the CEPEM business incubator. The Foundation provides preferential loans and provides full support for supported projects, while CEPEM implements educational programs and a mentoring system. Together with the leadership of FODEM and CEPEM, IPC Secretary Ilya Lisnyak visited the Dakar City Hall, where seminars and classes are held for aspiring entrepreneurs, he also spoke to future entrepreneurs about his entrepreneurial experience from the age of 13 and talked to the teaching staff.
This year, Dakar has received the right to host the sixth Global Social Economy Forum; on May 1-6, it will bring together about 5,000 participants from all over the world in the capital of Senegal. Based on the results of the meeting with management of the Foundation, representatives of the International Project Congress from different countries will speak on the sidelines of this forum.
The IPC Secretariat thanks Moustapha Thiam for organizing the entire program of meetings, as well as the First Secretary of the Russian Embassy in Senegal and Gambia, Alexei Aleksandrovich Rugachev, for participating in working meetings and general support of the delegation.