Senegal Has Signed a Deal with Separatist Rebels. But Will it End One of Africa’s Longest Conflicts?

Senegalese opposition leader Ousmane Sonko addresses journalists following his release from police custody in Dakar, Senegal, on March 8, 2021. (AP Photo/Sylvain Cherkaoui, File)

By BABACAR DIONE and BABA AHMED

8:56 PM EST, February 27, 2025

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — A new peace deal between Senegal and a separatist rebel group in the country’s southern region has been touted by the government as a key step in ending one of Africa’s longest conflicts. Analysts, however, say it did not involve all the rebels and fails to address the root causes of the conflict.

The deal, signed by the government and the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance was announced by Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko during a visit to neighboring Guinea-Bissau on Monday.

Past peace deals have failed to end the fighting in the Casamance region, which is separated from the rest of Senegal by the nation of Gambia and has historically suffered from lower development rates and access to markets in the more prosperous north.

The rebels have been fighting for Casamance’s independence since the early 1980s, arguing that the region has suffered neglect by the government.

Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko touted the latest peace agreement as an important step in ensuring lasting peace in Casamance, home to some 1.6 million people.

The deal offered a presidential pardon for imprisoned rebels as well as amnesty and a social reintegration path for other rebels, according to Vincent Foucher, a political scientist at the France-based National Center for Scientific Research, with knowledge of the agreement.

However, it involves only a faction of the rebel group that is less potent than two others and excludes the hardline faction led by Salif Sadio, the most powerful of the rebel leaders, said Foucher.

“I don’t see a solution yet. It’s a continuation of endless discussions with a divided movement,” he said. “The Senegalese state is not prepared to make the political or administrative concessions demanded by the other factions that have not signed the peace agreement.”

Senegal’s government did not immediately respond to AP’s inquiry for comments about the claims.

The rebels’ calls for the region’s independence will be difficult to neglect despite the new deal, said Mohamed Traoré, a doctoral researcher at the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar.

“Casamance nationals, especially the young, are proud to belong to the Senegalese state today, but the MFDC’s hard wing continues to call for independence,” said Traoré.

The rebels have not publicly spoken about the deal.

However, Amidou Djiba, a spokesman for one of the factions not involved in the peace deal, earlier this year accused Senegal’s government of “choosing the people it talks to,” a trend he said would not help the return of peace in the region.

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Ahmed reported from Bamako, Mali.