The market for so-called skin "whitening" products does indeed exist, despite government bans, and demand for these types of products is significant.
This demand has been picked up by brands that see this practice as a real market opportunity. The practice of skin whitening is promoted in particular through advertising. Numerous TV commercials and billboards fuel the diktat of "fair skin."
From a social phenomenon, depigmentation has now become a real public health issue. Many African governments are taking initiatives to curb the phenomenon.
A few months ago, the Senegalese government decided to take a tougher stance. Legislation is in force prohibiting the broadcasting of advertisements promoting "skin-lightening" products, but many publishers choose to break the rules.
At the end of December, several players were called to order.
The Senegalese television channel SENTV paid the price when the CNRA forced the channel to stop broadcasting its programs for a period of seven days starting on December 31, 2019. This sanction was the subject of much controversy and was contested by local audiovisual players. GFM is also in the firing line, following a formal notice from the CNRA relating to the television channel TFM. The group subsequently undertook to cease broadcasting advertisements promoting skin-lightening products on all its media outlets, RFM, King FM, and TFM.