The Union of Contractual Agents of Health and Social Action of Senegal (Sacsass), sub-section of the Matlaboul Fawzeyni hospital in Touba, organized a sit-in on Monday, November 10, 2025, to denounce several serious dysfunctions affecting the establishment.

In a statement, Secretary General Pape Ngom expressed the concerns of healthcare staff on six key points.

"We express our wish and our concern for the preservation of our working tool in order to guarantee quality care to the population. This press conference was convened today to discuss six points," he stated from the outset.

The first complaint concerns the deplorable state of the road leading to the hospital. "The first point that concerns us is the state of the road leading to the hospital. It's the road that leads from the hospital's entrance to the hospital gate. This road has been in disrepair for years, and you are well aware that everyone is suffering because of it," explained the secretary general.

“The accompanying persons suffer, the patients suffer, the staff suffer, and especially during the rainy season. It is a very bumpy road and has real problems. We demand that this road be put in good condition before or in the near future,” he insisted.

The second point highlights the glaring inadequacy of the annual subsidy allocated to the hospital. "We are listing the inadequacy of the annual subsidy for Matlaboul Fawzeyni Hospital. You all know that the hospital is at level 3, and unfortunately, the annual subsidy that the State allocates to the hospital is mostly lower than that of other level 3 hospitals," denounces Pape Ngom.

"So the subsidy hasn't even reached 750 million, it's around 650 million annually. And here, we deplore this lack of respect towards the Matlaboul Fawzeyni public health establishment. We ask the State to meet this need and correct this inadequacy as soon as possible," he insisted.

Two years of Magal without subsidies: "Not a single franc has been given"

The third point addresses the complete lack of funding for healthcare coverage during the Grand Magal. "We are also addressing the third point regarding the complete lack of funding for the Grand Magal. As you know, two editions have already taken place, and unfortunately, the government has not allocated any funding for healthcare coverage for the Magal in 2024 or 2025. Not a single franc has been given to the hospital in either of those two years," the union representative revealed.

“We deplore this with all our might and we demand that the State rectify this shortcoming as soon as possible and also provide the annual subsidy it received for the operation of the Matlaboul Fawzeyni Hospital. This subsidy has resulted in a shortfall of almost one billion. This has led to management problems, and we deplore that as well,” he added.

The integration of housing and risk allowances into pay slips is also part of it. "We are asking the State and the Ministry of Health and Social Action to integrate housing and risk allowances into pay slips, which is commonly called a State-union agreement, at least for all contract workers in public health establishments but also for contract workers in the Ministry of Health and Public Hygiene," demanded Pape Ngom.

“At this point, we are asking that the integration be carried out after the various trade union federations have signed the social stability pact. We are asking the State to make this a reality and to integrate it into pay slips as soon as possible,” he continued.

Six months of unpaid back wages: "An injustice"

Regarding the six months of unpaid compensation, he demands: "The State must pay for housing and risk coverage at the Matlaboul Fawzeyni hospital, which has experienced a six-month arrears in payments. We demand that this arrears be paid very quickly in order to correct this injustice."

"Because you are well aware that there are other establishments in the Diourbel region that have been paid in full, and only one month has been paid to the Matlaboul Fawzeyni hospital, and that is something we deplore with the utmost energy," he vehemently denounced.

The union representatives also criticized the failure to respect the national social stability pact. "We are also demanding respect for the national social stability pact regarding the payment of allowances and housing. This pact was signed last June by the government, by its Prime Minister, and this was confirmed by the supplementary budget laws of June, and the budget was passed by the National Assembly," Pape Ngom reminded everyone.

“So why are we waiting until now to not be paid for housing and risks? For this reason, we demand that the State pay all contractors in public health establishments, particularly those at Matlaboul Fawzeyni Hospital, and we also insist that they pay the contractors of the Ministry of Health and Public Hygiene,” he concluded.

SACSASS now expects concrete and rapid responses from the authorities to correct these multiple dysfunctions which threaten the quality of care offered to the population.