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The Organising Committee of the Youth Olympic Games (COJOJ) and Senegal’s national commission for the protection of personal data (CDP) signed an agreement on Thursday, 4 December, in Dakar. The accord is intended to bolster the safeguarding of personal data for all participants in the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games.
With 330 days to go until the opening ceremony of the 2026 Youth Olympic Games, preparations are gathering pace. A major recruitment campaign for 6,000 volunteers is already under way, while three promotional caravans are touring northern, central, and southern Senegal to encourage prospective applicants to join the programme.
In total, some 2,700 athletes, 206 international delegations, 25,000 accredited persons and around one million spectators are expected to take part in the competition and the associated events — a vast ecosystem generating large volumes of sensitive personal data.
Against this backdrop, the signing of the partnership agreement between COJOJ Dakar 2026 and the CDP marks a significant milestone in the ongoing preparations.
A comprehensive partnership
Through this new partnership, COJOJ Dakar 2026 and the CDP reaffirm their shared commitment to applying practices compliant with national legislation — notably Law No. 2008-12 of 25 January 2008 — and aligned with the highest international standards.
The agreement will provide tangible support to COJOJ teams as they implement robust data-protection measures, including:
- A comprehensive and regularly updated data-processing register;
- Clear procedures for the exercise of individuals’ rights;
- Appropriate security safeguards;
- Continuous awareness-raising for staff, delivery partners and service providers.
“Making Dakar 2026 an exemplary event”
‘’This signing marks an important step in our collective commitment to ensuring that the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games stand as an exemplary event not only in sporting and organisational terms, but also ethically, legally and socially,”’’, said Mr Ibrahima Wade, COJOJ’s General Coordinator, during the ceremony.
Recalling that Senegal is preparing to host the first-ever Youth Olympic Games on African soil, Mr Wade stressed:This carries a particular responsibility: to guarantee an environment built on trust, transparency and respect for the fundamental rights of everyone involved in the Games — whether athletes, volunteers, partners, staff or the wider public.”.’’
