Dakar et Casablanca, deux ports pour la globalisation: trajectoires d’innovation technique dans les ports de l’Afrique de l’Ouest

Abstract

Ports have been essential elements on the expansion of the industrial capitalism in West Africa. These ports were reformed in order to acquire industrial features such as the introduction of railway infrastructures to connect the hinterlands with the Atlantic coast. Thus, these transports systems were built to encourage the external trade and the development of the cash crop sectors. This paper analyses the evolution of the transport system in Dakar (Senegal) and Casablanca (Morocco). These ports were key elements which supported the development of the external trade based on the vigour of the regional commodities (peanuts and phosphates). This paper explores from a comparative perspective the evolution of the external trade at both ports that was tied to the infrastructure modernisation.