School year 2026-2027: the G7 takes action with 72 hours of strike

The new school year 2026-2027 is announced under very high tensions in Senegal. The G7, which includes the main teachers' unions (SAEMS, UDEN, CUSEMS, etc.), published a statement on October 15, 2026. Between persistent floods, unfulfilled government promises, and salary delays, the social front is already ablaze with the announcement of a three-day strike call. This start of the school year comes in a particularly difficult climate context, marked by floods resulting from torrential rains that fell at the beginning of October. Many educational institutions found themselves under the water, while the transport network was heavily disrupted by road closures and deep puddles making several routes inaccessible. Faced with this situation, the G7 welcomed the decision of the Ministry of National Education to postpone the start of the school year to Monday, October 12, 2026. The collective also wished to express its deep gratitude to all the living forces of the nation mobilized for the pumping, cleaning, and weeding operations in schools, while urging the authorities to continue the actions undertaken to free the still flooded establishments. The teachers did not fail to respond massively on October 5th for the administrative start of the school year, a date that coincides this year with the sixtieth anniversary of World Teachers' Day (WTD) dedicated to the protection and valorization of the profession. However, the G7 deplores that in Senegal, a long way remains to be traveled to truly value the status of teaching staff. The G7 presents an alarming assessment of the follow-up of the agreement signed on April 16, 2026, at the Prime Ministry, deploring the manifest violation of the commitments made by the government. The evaluation of this agreement reveals the non-publication in September 2026 of the study on the remuneration system for public agents, as well as the absence of sharing the audit results on arrears due to teachers, initially planned for August 2026. Persistent blockages regarding the payment of allowances at the end of exams, the digitalization of the process, and the completion of the Universal Diploma Training (FDU) according to the agreed schedule are added to this. Furthermore, the union denounces the non-respect of Decree 2026-65 relating to decision-makers at fault, the lack of consideration for the revaluation of their retirement pensions, as well as the delay in paying allowances for EFA classes and the provision of school supplies in Arabic for elementary schools. Despite the solemn promises of the ministers and the commitment of the outgoing Prime Minister to guarantee the agreement, the government has failed its word, transforming these unfulfilled commitments into a major risk of instability for the school year. In addition to these structural shortcomings are heavy conjuncture problems that weaken the daily lives of teachers. The collective points to the resurgence of delayed salary payments for contractual teachers, as well as the dysfunctions surrounding the third grouping of trainees from FASTEF and the delay in disbursing the overall financial envelope. Slowdowns are also noted in the training of polyvalent facilitators and major anomalies in the granting of housing loans (DMC), characterized by multiple deductions from salaries while credits are not positioned. Finally, the G7 deplores the errors noted in the preparation of teaching aptitude certificates (CAP 2026) as well as the absence of a definitive solution for the situation of Senegalese schools in Gambia. Considering that the government shows a lack of manifest political will to resolve these essential problems, the G7 pounds the table. Recalling that the State is responsible for ensuring the proper running of education and guaranteeing the stability of the school year, the collective warns that any shortcoming will be assimilated to a desire to deprive Senegalese children of their constitutional right to education. In order to compel the government to respect its commitments, the G7 plenary session initiates an action plan of warning and decrees a total strike in all educational establishments in Senegal on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, October 21, 22, and 23, 2026. Teachers are called upon to show renewed vigilance and to fully play their role as sentinels to demand the strict application of the agreements of April 16, 2026.