The objective of the contract was the identification, development, implementation and monitoring of a trade facilitation project in Senegal. The project developed was titled “Automation of the Import Process for Agro-Industrial Products”. It was anchored within the Invest for Jobs program in Senegal implemented by GIZ on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). It was part of the operational framework of the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation (GATF), which contributed its expertise, lessons learned and best practices to the project.
The project focused on the digitalisation and automation of parts of the import process for pilot agroindustrial products with the aim to reduce the time and costs involved in importing these products. It also aimed to contribute to improving trade and investment conditions for African and European companies in Senegal, in the agro-industrial sector.
The result was the operationalization of the newly-developed digital platform for requesting import permits for agro-industrial products. The related outputs were the following:
1. Digital tools were designed to automate the import process for agro-industrial products and were integrated into the electronic single window.
2. Cross-border agencies and SMEs were enabled to use the new digitalised procedure for importing the pilot agro-industrial products.
3. The capacities of the public and private. stakeholders to coordinate and monitor the digitalised import processes for agro-industrial products were improved.
During contract implementation, the contract was expanded to include a second project focusing on technical support to the DPV (Direction de la Protection des Végétaux) for the implementation of an "E-Payment" solution in line with the digitalisation process set up by the DPV through the implementation of the ePhyto project, which aims to digitize the phytosanitary certificate as well as the payment of services rendered by this department.
The results of the contract were as follows:

• Reduction of time (7.9 hours per permit) for border / documentary compliance for imports.
• Reduction in the documentary and border compliance cost imposed on businesses for imports (savings of 18,301 F CFA per permit).
• Reduction of indirect supply chain costs for imports (reduced transit time, storage costs, demurrage, opertional costs related to personnel needed for the process, etc.).

The project was a catalyst for the digitalisation of the DPV's processes, extending the platform's functions to other services such as importer registration and approval, and the implementation of an electronic payment solution. Trade facilitation in agro-industry and the related sectors (services linked to agro-industry) will ensure greater gender equality and empower women, given that this sector employs more than half of the global female workforce.