The ministry explores a lever to revive the cinema industry March 13, 2026
The Minister of Culture, Crafts and Tourism, Amadou Ba, yesterday visited the Canal Olympia Téranga Dakar cinema, recently handed over to the State by the Bolloré group. He raised the possibility of transforming this site into a real hub dedicated to the development of the national film industry.
To lay the foundations of a truly national film industry, the State of Senegal is banking on the development of suitable infrastructure. With this in mind, the Minister of Culture, Crafts and Tourism, Amadou Ba, visited the Canal Olympia Dakar cinema on Thursday March 12. Located near the Museum of Black Civilizations (Mcn) and the Grand National Theater Doudou Ndiaye Coumba Rose, it now constitutes a strategic cultural facility since its recent handover to the State of Senegal by the Bolloré group, which until then operated it. It is with this in mind that Amadou Ba went to the site, accompanied by the Secretary of State for Culture, Creative Industries and Historical Heritage, Bakary Sarr, as well as several film and audiovisual players.
For the minister, this visit comes at a decisive moment. On February 10, during the opening of the orientation workshop devoted to the development of the Strategic Development Plan for cinema, audiovisual and digital creation 2026-2030, he already called for making Senegalese cinema a real industry that creates jobs and wealth. “Cinema will have a very large task to clear,” he recalled, referring to the work recently carried out with the entire cinematographic ecosystem: academics, directors, producers and actors gathered to reflect on the future of the sector.
In this dynamic, the question of the future of the Canal Olympia Dakar site now appears to be one of the major avenues for recovery. “The future of Canal Olympia will be understood in a global and coherent manner in the expected conclusions of this work,” indicated Amadou Ba.
An infrastructure dedicated to cinema
More than just a screening location, some professionals in the sector have called for a more ambitious transformation of the site. The objective would therefore be to make it a space entirely dedicated to cinema, capable of hosting different activities linked to audiovisual creation and distribution. “We came here with the big names of Senegalese cinema to make a plea. The latter aims to allow the entire infrastructure to be entirely dedicated to cinema,” he explained.
For cultural authorities, the location of the site constitutes a major asset. Located in an area marked by major national cultural institutions (Grand Théâtre, Museum of Civilizations, etc.), the Olympia Canal could contribute to creating a true cultural continuum in the heart of Dakar. Thus, the Minister in charge of Culture did not fail to recall the historic place of Senegal in African cinema, evoking in particular emblematic figures like Ousmane Sembène and Djibril Diop Mambéty, who contributed to building our cinematographic reputation. Despite this prestigious heritage, Senegal remains today faced with an infrastructure deficit.
Faced with this observation, the creation of a national cinema center appears to be one of the projects envisaged. Such a system would make it possible to structure the sector’s ecosystem and bring together the various activities linked to production, training and dissemination.
Present during the visit, the general director of the State Built Heritage Management and Exploitation Company (Sogepa), Elimane Pouye, recalled that the site now belongs to the State heritage and that its management falls under this structure. If the national company’s mission is to economically enhance public infrastructure, its manager says he remains open to a cultural orientation of the site. “Sogepa is very open to the idea of thinking with the ministry about a real cultural destination for this place,” he assured.
Discussions should therefore continue in the coming weeks in order to define an operating model reconciling cultural vocation and public management requirements. For the authorities and for professionals in the sector, the issue goes far beyond the simple management of a cinema. It is about laying the foundations for a lasting revival of Senegalese cinema.
The Canal Olympia Téranga room was inaugurated on May 11, 2017 by the Bolloré group, in the presence of President Macky Sall. This restitution opens a new phase in the reflection on its management and on the place that it could now occupy within the national cultural ecosystem.
Adama NDIAYE
