Sylvain Sankalé holds a Doctorate in Law and is a consultant specialising in advising investors and businesses in West Africa, with particular expertise in Senegal and in the region’s legal and institutional environment.
He practised as a lawyer for twenty-six years as a member of the Senegal Bar and, concurrently, for fifteen years as a member of the Paris Bar. He acted as a trusted local partner to several leading international law firms, in particular EVERSHEDS SUTHERLAND, BIRD & BIRD and EDWARD NATHAN SONNENBERGS LLC. He was a partner and subsequently managing partner of GENI & SANKALÉ, now GENI & KEBE, where he remains Of Counsel. Since 2008, he has primarily pursued an advisory practice through 2S CONSULTING.
Throughout his career, Sylvain Sankalé has advised international companies, financial institutions, investors and public-sector entities on their projects in Senegal and across West Africa. His areas of expertise include investment, business law, the legal and regulatory environment for companies, financing, energy and infrastructure, as well as assisting foreign companies seeking to establish or expand their operations in the region.
He has also carried out numerous assignments for public institutions and international organisations, including in connection with projects financed or supported by the World Bank, the European Union, Expertise France and USAID. His work has notably covered economic regulation, infrastructure financing, energy, corporate governance, and anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing matters.
His in-depth knowledge of the Senegalese and West African economic and institutional environments enables him to advise clients beyond purely legal considerations, incorporating the institutional, economic and operational dimensions of their projects.
Sylvain Sankalé is a French Foreign Trade Advisor (Conseiller du Commerce extérieur de la France) and an Economic Diplomacy Advisor to the Embassy of Belgium in Senegal.
He holds a Doctorate in Law from the University of Montpellier I and has also taught and lectured at several universities in Senegal and abroad.
A recognised writer, historian and art critic, Sylvain Sankalé is also the author of numerous publications, particularly on African history and contemporary African art. His involvement in the cultural sector has notably led him to hold various positions within the Dakar Biennale of Contemporary African Art.
He is a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters of the French Republic (Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres).
In 2026, he joined SRDB as a Partner in Senegal.