Senegal’s army has received have a batch of new military hardware, including Puma M36 armoured personnel carriers (APCs) as the country continues to strengthen all branches of its military.
The hardware was received in Dakar by Sidiki Kaba, Senegal’s defence minister, and Chief of Army Staff Brigadier General Cheikh Wade on 24 June. The shipment included at least 11 Puma M36 APCs as well as heavy machineguns, mortars, recovery vehicles, assault rifles, riot shields, a dozen Toyota Land Cruisers equipped with pintle-mounted heavy machineguns, combat ambulances, rocket-propelled grenade launchers and riot helmets.
The equipment will greatly enhance the capacity of the military.
The equipment acquisition is part of President Macky Sall’s Emerging Senegal Plan that aims to enhance the country’s armed forces.
The country faces multiple security threats including Islamist terror groups in the Sahel, and separatists in its Casamance region, the location of one of Africa’s longest-running conflicts.
Senegal is known to field OTT Puma APCs – according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), 84 of these were delivered between 2014 and 2020, but it is not clear how many Puma M36s have been delivered in the most recent batch.
Senegal awaits the delivery of LG1 105 mm towed howitzers from France’s Nexter, and three OPV 58S offshore patrol vessels from Piriou.