April 4 parade in Thiès: Le Soleil presents its coverage strategy to Mayor Babacar Diop

The general director of the national daily “Le Soleil”, Lamine Niang, accompanied by several company officials, made a courtesy and working visit on Tuesday March 10 to the Thiès town hall where he was received by the mayor, Babacar Diop, to whom he presented the strategy for covering the April 4 parade that the “Cité du Rail” will host this year.

A few weeks before the celebration of the 66th anniversary of Senegal’s independence, the official parade of which will exceptionally be relocated to Thiès, the newspaper “Le Soleil” is organizing itself to give this event visibility commensurate with its importance. In this perspective, its general director, Lamine Niang, accompanied by several managers of this press group, made, yesterday, Tuesday March 10, a courtesy and working visit to the city hall where he was received by the mayor, Babacar Diop. Faithful to its public service mission, the national daily intends to mobilize all of its media and platforms – paper newspaper, special magazine, website, Web TV, archives and printing – in order to promote this historic event.
In an atmosphere marked by cordiality, the mayor, surrounded by his chief of staff and his director of Communications, listened attentively to the “Sun” delegation. By way of introduction, the Editorial Director, Daouda Mané, presented the members of the delegation. This included in particular the editorial advisor, the director of Advertising, the editor-in-chief of Digital, the artistic director, the head of Special Notebooks as well as managers responsible for contracts, partnerships and archives.
Speaking, Lamine Niang first thanked the mayor of Thiès for the warm and spontaneous welcome he received. He recalled the interest shown by Mr. Diop during their prior telephone exchanges, which could have been enough to seal this partnership.
However, he stressed, it seemed important to him to travel personally to Thiès, with the top management of “Soleil”, in order to mark the importance that the newspaper attaches to this event while mobilizing in the background all the editorial teams and technical services based in Dakar.
According to the general director of “Soleil”, the choice of the President of the Republic to relocate the April 4 parade to Thiès is both natural and logical, given the historical and symbolic role of this city in national construction.
He recalled that “Le Soleil”, as a repository of the country’s collective memory, could not remain on the sidelines of such a moment. This is why the press company decided to mobilize exceptional human, technical and technological resources to support the celebration. The objective, he clarified, is to inscribe this parade in the annals of national history and to preserve its memory for future generations.
Lamine Niang also praised the mayor’s work and commitment to the development of the city of Thiès, as well as his intellectual and academic influence.
A magazine under study
Following his intervention, the various managers present, in turn, presented the axes of the editorial and media strategy articulated in particular around the production of a special magazine dedicated to Thiès, thematic reports, digital content and multimedia coverage of the event.
Speaking, Babacar Diop expressed his honor and pleasure in welcoming the “Soleil” delegation to the Thiès town hall, recalling that this municipal institution is often called “the Senghor town hall”, in reference to the former president and poet Léopold Sédar Senghor.
The mayor stressed that the parade of April 4, 2026 constitutes a major moment for the Nation, but also for the Thiès region. He described the “Cité du Rail” as “a city of history, a land of memory and martyrs”, believing that this event could be the most important national meeting organized in Thiès since its foundation.
Reacting to the “Sun” proposal, the councilor considered the offer particularly relevant and strategic. According to him, this media initiative can contribute to strengthening the image and strategic repositioning of the city of Thiès in order to allow it to regain its place in the sub-region and on the international scene. “Thies must make its voice heard in the concert of the great cities of the world,” he said.
In this dynamic, the mayor recalled certain initiatives undertaken by the municipality, in particular the proposed candidacy of Thiès for the organization of an international jazz festival.
Babacar Diop also took note of the different areas selected by the “Soleil” editorial team to promote the city in the special magazine. However, he suggested integrating the religious dimension, given the presence of many influential religious families in Thiès. He also insisted on the importance of sport, in particular football, recalling that several sons of Thiès contributed to the great performances of the Senegal national team. Finally, Mr. Diop wanted to highlight an aspect often neglected in the historical accounts of the city: the place of the Sérères Noon, the first inhabitants of Thiès. He regretted that the town’s history was sometimes reduced to the arrival of the railway; which has the effect of erasing an older and essential memory.
“The history of Thiès does not begin with the railway,” insisted the mayor, calling for this historical dimension to be rehabilitated in any reflection on the identity of the city.