Senegal receives national cloud infrastructure for Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games
Date: 2026-03-26
By: Kanto Kai Okanta
Senegal
has taken a significant step toward strengthening its digital sovereignty with
the official reception of a national cloud infrastructure designed to support
the Youth Olympic Games Dakar 2026.
The
handover ceremony, took place in the presence of the Minister of Communication,
Telecommunications and Digital Affairs, Alioune Sall, alongside teams from
Sénégal Numérique S.A. (SENUM SA), the Youth Olympic Games Organising
Committee, and Alibaba Cloud.
The
infrastructure will host strategic applications for the Dakar 2026 Youth
Olympic Games and is built on Alibaba Cloud’s Apsara Stack solution, ensuring
local hosting of sensitive data while meeting international standards for
performance, security, and compliance.
The
project follows the signing of an agreement in July 2025 in Hangzhou, after a
prior official visit to China by Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko. It forms part of
Senegal’s broader New Deal for Technology agenda under President Bassirou
Diomaye Faye, aimed at accelerating digital transformation and strengthening
national capabilities.
Beyond
its role in supporting the Youth Olympic Games, the initiative is expected to
serve as the foundation for a national public cloud accessible to both public
and private sector actors.
It
also includes capacity-building components such as the training of 200 cloud
engineers, the establishment of a Technology Center of Excellence, and support
for 1,000 young talents through the Alibaba Cloud Academy.
