New LONASE chief sets out governance and growth agenda for operator
Baldé said LONASE would focus on preserving public confidence, promoting responsible gambling, strengthening governance and improving economic performance.
Senegal.- Newly appointed LONASE director general Abdourahmane Baldé has pledged to strengthen governance, promote responsible gaming and modernise the Senegalese national lottery operator while building on its recent progress.
Speaking during the official handover ceremony, Baldé said his appointment was “less a distinction than a responsibility,” describing public office as a temporary mission dedicated to serving the public interest.
He thanked president Bassirou Diomaye Faye for renewing his confidence in him and acknowledged the support of the prime minister and the minister of economy, finance and planning. He also paid tribute to outgoing director general Toussaint Manga, commending him for his service to the organisation.
Returning to an institution he previously led, Baldé stressed that his priority would be continuity rather than division. He said: “I am not returning with a spirit of revenge or to settle scores. I am returning to work, to serve, to build and to work with everyone.”
Baldé said LONASE would focus on preserving public confidence, protecting the integrity of gaming, promoting responsible gambling, strengthening governance and improving economic performance. He stated: “Our ambition is to make LONASE a benchmark public enterprise—a modern, innovative institution committed to transparency, accountability and ethics.”
The director general added that achieving those goals would require a collective effort rather than individual leadership, saying: “No lasting reform can be achieved by one person alone. Strong institutions are always the product of collective effort.”
Addressing employees, Baldé said merit would remain the primary basis for recognition and promotion while promising an open management style centred on dialogue, fairness and professional development.
He also reassured operators, distributors, commercial partners and sporting organisations that LONASE would continue to honour its commitments through relationships based on trust, legal certainty and transparency.
Concluding his address, Baldé said his return to LONASE was an opportunity to strengthen the institution’s existing foundations and advance its long-term ambitions.
