20 November 2023

People at the Heart of PAGE work – Amadou Lamine Diagne

Discover the interview series featuring people that have collaborated with PAGE at a given time. The purpose is to voice experiences, opinions, and insights on how the green economy is evolving and how the green economic transformation is being implemented around the world. Meet Dr. Amadou Lamine Diagne, who has been collaborating closely with PAGE for almost a decade.

“The green economy is gradually being introduced into the curricula of schools, training centres and universities. In short, green has come to affect all economic and social sectors”

Dr. Amadou Lamine Diagne is the Advisor to the Director General of the Centre de Suivi Ecologique (CSE), Ministry of the Environment, Sustainable Development and Ecological Transition (MEDDTE). With a doctorate in Environmental Sciences, he has held the positions of Director of Green Financing and Partnerships, Technical Adviser, Permanent Secretary of the Inter-State Committee for Drought Control and Coordinator of the Planning and Monitoring Studies Unit of the Senegalese Ministry of the Environment.

Q1. When was your first contact with the PAGE team?

My first contact with PAGE was in Rio, at the 2012 conference on sustainable development. I represented my Minister at a PAGE meeting. The meeting, which was attended by several African countries and Korea, enabled me to appreciate the importance of the green economy for Senegal, a country whose economy depends first and foremost on the quality of its natural resources. The Green Finance Department that I headed at the time had received instructions from the higher authorities to promote the green economy and make it a reality.

Q2. What was the Inclusive Green Economy (IGE) perception at that time?

The Rio+20 Summit indicated that the green economy would be an important lever for achieving development goals. For Senegal, which was formulating its National Development Strategy (NDS), it was imperative to give content to the concept of the green economy and to take it into account in the future strategy.

It should also be noted that Senegal has not developed a green economy strategy. We preferred to be more concrete by producing an Exploratory Report on the Green Economy (Reev). This report finally convinced the most sceptical by demonstrating that the green economy generates growth, enables natural resources to be managed sustainably and has enormous social impacts. The other initiative we took was to identify endogenous practices and knowledge that could be considered as contributing to the promotion of the green economy.

In short, our perception of the economy was positive, realistic and full of hope. In its Exploratory Report on the Green Economy (Reev), Senegal characterised the green economy as “an economy that is low in carbon, sparing of natural resources and with a high social impact”.

Q1. Quand avez-vous eu votre premier contact avec l’équipe PAGE?

Mon premier contact avec PAGE a eu lieu à Rio, lors de la conférence de 2012 sur le Développement durable. J’avais représenté mon Ministre a une réunion de PAGE. Cette rencontre qui s’est tenue en présence de plusieurs pays africains et de la Corée m’a permis de mesurer tout l’enjeu et l’intérêt de l’économie verte pour le Sénégal ; un pays dont l’économie dépend d’abord de la qualité de ses ressources naturelles. La Direction des financements verts que je dirigeais alors avait reçu les instructions des autorités supérieures pour promouvoir l’économie verte et en faire une réalité.

Q2. Quelle était la perception de l’économie verte et inclusive au Sénégal à ce moment-là ?

Le Sommet de Rio+20 avait indiqué que l’économie verte sera un levier important pour atteindre les objectifs de développement. Pour le Sénégal qui formulait sa Stratégie Nationale de Développement (SNDD) il était impératif de donner un contenu au concept d’économie verte et d’en tenir compte dans la future SNDD.

Il faut également retenir que le Sénégal n’a pas élaboré de stratégie sur l’économie verte. Nous avons préféré être plus concret en produisant un Rapport exploratoire sur l’économie verte (Reev). Ce rapport a fini de convaincre les plus sceptiques en démontant que l’économie verte était productrice de croissance, qu’elle permet de gérer durablement les ressources naturelles et offre d’énormes impacts sociaux. L’autre initiative que nous avons prise a été de recenser dans nos pratiques et connaissances endogènes celles qui peuvent être considérées comme des éléments contributifs à la promotion de l’économie verte.

En somme, notre perception de l’économie était positive, réaliste et pleine d’espoir. Dans son Rapport exploratoire sur l’économie verte (Reev), le Sénégal a caractérisé l’économie verte ainsi : “une économie sobre en carbone, économe en ressources naturelles et à fort impact social“.

Q3. How has the green and inclusive economy developed in the country since then? Do you have any concrete examples?

Several studies and initiatives have been carried out on the concept. Our national strategy for promoting green jobs has won awards. Numerous projects and programmes to create green jobs continue to emerge.

A guidance document on green industrial opportunities has been produced. PAGE has provided support for a pilot project to set up a solar equipment assembly and maintenance unit. Senegal has produced a framework document on sustainable financing, and a green budget has been drawn up. We are making progress on green taxonomy and the issue of green bonds.

The green economy is gradually being introduced into the curricula of schools, training centres and universities. In short, green has come to affect all economic and social sectors. Senegal has set up a national platform on the green economy.

The global academies on the green economy, which I had the opportunity to attend, are events that have left an indelible mark on me. They are extremely important opportunities for stakeholders to exchange views. As I have said over and over again, we need to encourage exchanges of experience between countries on the green economy, and create regional or sub-regional dynamics on the green economy. These dynamics will be based on South-South dialogue, but also on North-South dialogue, as I advocated at the last Global Academy on the Green Economy.

Q4. What are the challenges and opportunities related to the implementation of a green and inclusive economy for your country and why? In what direction will the country evolve?

For Senegal, one of the most important challenges is that of productivity and sustainable, resilient growth. The green economy must first and foremost create wealth in accordance with the guidelines of the Emerging Senegal Plan (ESP), our benchmark for socio-economic and environmental development policy. It must be based on the responsible management of our natural resources, the use of our local knowledge and the preservation of our environment.

The social impact of the green economy should enable us to tackle poverty effectively and sustainably. Finally, the green economy must lay the foundations for green governance. In Senegal, the constitution states that natural resources belong to the people.

Green governance must enable communities to be effectively and strongly involved in designing and drawing up policies and implementing development programmes that include the management of natural resources and the environment.

Q5. How do you see your engagement?

My commitment is firm and determined. Indeed, I am convinced that a development concept such as the green economy is within the reach of our countries, within the reach of Africa. It represents an opportunity for us to participate in the redefinition of a new world economic order.

The people with whom I have worked to promote the economy in Senegal have remembered this phrase from me: “we are going to learn by doing”. And so, on an issue as important as employment and youth employment in Senegal, I have seen the lives of hundreds of young girls and boys change thanks to green jobs.

Q6. What is the strength of a programme like PAGE? Can you tell us about a particular PAGE milestone or event?

What is striking about PAGE is that nothing is imposed on countries; everything is discussed before being implemented. This synergy of thought and action is PAGE’s strength. It should also be noted that PAGE does not seek to develop the green economy in place of countries or their administrations, as some organisations do.

The global academies on the green economy, which I had the opportunity to attend, are events that have left an indelible mark on me. They are extremely important opportunities for stakeholders to exchange views. As I have said over and over again, we need to encourage exchanges of experience between countries on the green economy, and create regional or sub-regional dynamics on the green economy. These dynamics will be based on South-South dialogue, but also on North-South dialogue, as I advocated at the last Global Academy on the Green Economy.

I also know that PAGE regularly has to welcome new countries to promote the green economy. However, a programme to consolidate what has been achieved must be designed to continue supporting the countries that PAGE has already assisted. The case of Senegal is illustrative: after eight years of PAGE’s presence, we have developed several initiatives in favour of the green economy. We now need to consolidate these achievements while making progress on the issue. To this end, it is imperative that the United Nations agencies (UNDP, UNITAR, UNEP, UNIDO and ILO), which have provided us with effective support, remain our partners and take an interest in the implementation of the action plan of our national platform on the green economy.

Aristotle: “Nature does nothing in vain”.

Learn more about Senegal

Eight years on the path to a Green Economy
Senegal was one of the first countries to join the PAGE initiative in 2014. Since then, the PAGE initiative has implemented numerous actions in Senegal through an ambitious program (2014-2019), with an extension phase (2020-2022) and a program to support a green and economic recovery, following the occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Senegal was one of the first countries to join the PAGE initiative in 2014. Since then, the PAGE initiative has implemented numerous actions in Senegal through an ambitious program (2014-2019), with an extension phase (2020-2022) and a program to support a green and economic recovery, following the occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read more