Senegal's National Assembly President Ousmane Sonko has slammed the government's decision to pursue a G20 debt restructuring framework, insisting the country's financial problems could have been resolved without it.

"We should never have agreed to become the first test case, to serve as a guinea pig for a new system, because our problem was essentially a cash flow problem, a financing problem."

In his remarks in Dakar on Monday, Sonko accused the government of deviating from PASTEF's economic vision.

He raised concerns about whether debt negotiations had occurred without his knowledge. Sonko also criticised the reductions in social spending and public investment, claiming that the authorities have neglected the needs of struggling Senegalese citizens.

"Either they conducted negotiations in secret without informing me, despite my position as Prime Minister and my known convictions, or they viewed their own Prime Minister as an obstacle. The Senegalese people are weary. They need leaders who support them and provide greater assistance. When you reduce the investment budget by 555 billion CFA francs, what remains? We are no longer genuinely pursuing an investment policy."

Senegal's debt crisis deepened after an audit uncovered billions of dollars in previously undisclosed borrowing, which prompted the IMF to suspend disbursements under its previous lending programme.

Sonko, who served as Prime Minister until May 2026, now heads Senegal's National Assembly.