Two young ECOWAS volunteers from Cape Verde and Côte d’Ivoire described their experiences at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, the first Olympic Games organised on the African continent, where thousands of volunteers have been mobilised.
Olivia Lima Boyanm, a volunteer from Cape Verde, is visiting Senegal for the first time.
She said she was struck by the cultural richness of Senegal and of the other ECOWAS member states, which she is discovering through her interactions with young volunteers from across West Africa.
She praised the organisation put in place by Senegal and said she feels pride at taking part in the event.
“I never imagined that one day Africa would be able to host the Youth Olympic Games. And now, for the first time, we are witnessing an exceptional spectacle,” she said.
Olivia thanked the Senegalese National Olympic and Sports Committee (CNOSS) and ECOWAS, and encouraged young people in Cape Verde and across Africa to take up more sport and to take an interest in ECOWAS’s initiatives for young people.
Kader Abdoul Nanlo Coulibaly, a volunteer from Côte d’Ivoire, used a single word to sum up his time with the ECOWAS delegation: “magnificent.”
He cited the opening ceremony hosted by Senegal, the cultural diversity he encountered, the West African network he built through the volunteer programme and the professional experience he gained.
“From the spectacular opening ceremony hosted by Senegal to this cultural diversity, not to mention the West African network that this volunteer programme has enabled me to build and the professional experience I’ve been fortunate enough to gain, ‘magnificent’ is the only word that springs to mind,” he said.
A student of sports organisation management, Kader said his participation in the Dakar Games is an asset to his academic journey, allowing him to combine theory with practice.
He also expressed pride in representing Côte d’Ivoire as an ECOWAS volunteer at the Games.
The volunteers’ tasks at the venues range from welcoming delegations and guiding spectators to providing logistical support and assisting teams on the ground.
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