Senegalese football star Sadio Mané has moved beyond his career on the pitch with the launch of a CFA11.7 billion ($20.4 million) agro-industrial project in his hometown of Bambali, southern Senegal.
The project, known as SM10 Agro, is designed to expand mango production and processing while creating employment opportunities in the Sédhiou region.
Mané laid the foundation stone for the project on September 19 in Bambali, marking the beginning of an initiative that will combine farming, processing and local value creation.
At the centre of the project is an industrial processing facility expected to handle about 8,500 tonnes of mangoes annually. The facility will produce mango pulp, dried mango and mango butter for local and potentially export markets.
SM10 Agro will also include a 500-hectare plantation dedicated to Kent mangoes.
The project is expected to create more than 1,000 direct jobs at the initial stage, with the broader development projected to generate additional employment as operations expand.
Tackling Mango Losses
The investment targets a major challenge facing agriculture in Casamance, where inadequate storage and processing facilities contribute to significant post-harvest losses.
Senegal’s Sédhiou region is a major mango-producing area, but local farmers have faced difficulties in preserving and processing part of their harvest, limiting the economic value that can be generated from the crop.
The SM10 Agro project is intended to keep more of that value within the region by providing facilities where mangoes can be processed into finished and semi-finished products rather than being sold only as fresh produce.
The initiative also comes as Senegal works to strengthen its mango export chain following phytosanitary challenges, including fruit-fly infestations that previously affected access to European markets.
‘I Don’t Want to Be Remembered Only for Football’
Speaking about the project, Mané said his ambitions for Bambali extend beyond the achievements that made him one of Senegal’s most recognisable footballers.
He said he wanted his legacy to include contributions to employment creation and agricultural development in the community where he grew up.
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The project marks a shift from Mané’s previous community-focused investments towards a larger commercial venture aimed at creating productive economic activity in his hometown.
SM10 Agro is expected to take about 18 months to construct, according to Senegalese reports on the project.
For Bambali and the wider Sédhiou region, the development is expected to bring together agricultural production, processing, employment and skills development, with the aim of building a more complete local mango value chain.
Mané’s investment therefore places his hometown at the centre of a project intended not just to produce mangoes, but to process and commercialise them closer to where they are grown.