The verdict in three sentences
In Kaolack, a wholesaler who tracks groundnuts, millet or rice in a notebook typically loses several bags a month without knowing where they went. A well-built Excel workbook, with formulas, a stock sheet and a pivot table, answers the question "how much did millet bring in this month?" in thirty seconds. The Kolonell Practical Excel course, 75,000 FCFA (115 EUR) for 14 hours, is the shortest route there if you already work with numbers.
Why the notebook is expensive for a Kaolack trader
Kaolack is still the heart of Senegal's groundnut basin and one of the country's largest grain markets. Wholesalers at the central market and the depots around Médina Baye move hundreds of bags every week, at prices that shift with the marketing season. On paper, the same three problems keep coming back: totals redone on a calculator, theoretical stock that no longer matches the warehouse, and no way to compare two months without copying everything again.
Excel (or Google Sheets, free on a phone) fixes all three as soon as the table is clean: one row per sale, fixed columns (date, customer, product, quantity, unit price, amount), then formulas that do the math. VLOOKUP, or its modern version XLOOKUP taught in the course, finds a product's price in a list; SUMIFS adds up one customer's groundnut sales for a month; a pivot table summarizes everything by product and by week.
| Trader's task | In a notebook | With an Excel workbook |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly sales total | 1 to 2 h on a calculator | Instant (SUM) |
| Remaining millet stock | Physical count | Automatic: stock in minus stock out |
| Product price on an invoice | Look it up in a notebook | VLOOKUP or XLOOKUP |
| Sales by customer and product | Nearly impossible | Pivot table in 1 min |
| Stock-out alert | Noticed too late | Conditional formatting in red |
| Copying errors | Frequent | Reduced by drop-down lists |
Which training option to choose in 2026
In Kaolack the options are limited: a few office-skills centers, private tutoring at home, and free videos online. Videos help, but they are rarely built on FCFA cases, and nobody corrects your mistakes. Private tutoring works but adds up fast. The Kolonell course is online and self-paced, taught in French, built on local cases: a shop in Thiès, a pharmacy in Bamako, a wholesaler in Cotonou.
| Option (2026 ballpark) | Cost | Duration | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free YouTube videos | 0 FCFA | Varies | Scattered notions, no feedback |
| Private tutor in Kaolack | 5,000 to 10,000 FCFA per hour | 14 h = 70,000 to 140,000 FCFA | Personal attention, uneven content |
| Local office-skills center | 50,000 to 120,000 FCFA | 2 to 6 weeks | Fixed hours, Word and Excel often mixed |
| Kolonell Practical Excel | 75,000 FCFA (115 EUR) | 14 h, 6 modules | 30 lessons, 72 exercises, 2 graded projects, certificate |
| Full 5-level track | 350,000 FCFA instead of 450,000 | Level 1 to level 5 | Office skills up to executive assistant |
The course Practical Excel: tables, formulas and analysis for work is level 3 of 5 (Intermediate) of the Office and productivity track. The full track bundles the five courses for 350,000 FCFA instead of 450,000, payable with Wave or Orange Money.
What you learn, module by module
| Module | Content | Kaolack application |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Build a clean table | Columns, formats, freeze panes | Groundnut sales log |
| 2. Essential formulas | Absolute references, percentages, 18 % VAT | Margin per bag of rice |
| 3. Logic and lookup functions | IF, COUNTIF, SUMIFS, XLOOKUP | Automatic price on the invoice |
| 4. Sort, filter, make data talk | Filters, drop-down lists, conditional formatting | Alert when millet drops below 20 bags |
| 5. Pivot tables and charts | Pivot tables, monthly charts | Sales by customer and week |
| 6. Ready-to-use management tools | Stock sheet, invoice, budget | The depot's complete workbook |
On the job market, a store manager or assistant comfortable with Excel sits, as a 2026 ballpark, between 150,000 and 300,000 FCFA a month at a Kaolack company, a little more in Dakar. As a freelancer, a custom management workbook for a shop typically bills 30,000 to 150,000 FCFA. No income is guaranteed: it depends on the sector, your experience and your ability to show a tool that works.
Mini case study
Learn this skill with Kolonell Academy
Short, practical online courses (taught in French), graded exercises, certificate. Pay with Wave or Orange Money.
Mamadou, 31, runs his uncle's grain depot near Kaolack's central market. He sells about 400 bags a month and kept finding a 6-bag gap between the notebook and the warehouse: at 22,000 FCFA per bag of millet, about 132,000 FCFA of unexplained loss or error every month.
After the course (75,000 FCFA), he builds a stock sheet with stock in, stock out and an alert below 20 bags, plus a pivot table of sales by customer. The gap drops to 2 bags a month, or 44,000 FCFA. Monthly gain: 132,000 minus 44,000 = 88,000 FCFA. The course pays for itself in under a month (75,000 / 88,000 = 0.85 month), not counting the 6 hours of calculator work saved at every month-end. This scenario is illustrative: your figures will depend on your business.
FAQ
Do I need a computer to take the course?
A computer is recommended for pivot tables, but Google Sheets on a smartphone is enough for most of the 72 exercises. Many learners start on a phone, then move to a used laptop costing 120,000 to 200,000 FCFA.
VLOOKUP or XLOOKUP, which one should I learn?
The course teaches XLOOKUP, which is simpler and sturdier, while explaining VLOOKUP, which you will meet in older files. Both find a price in a 500-product list in a fraction of a second.
How long does it take to finish?
The course runs 14 hours. At 1 hour a day, plan on about 3 weeks, projects included.
Is the certificate recognized?
It is a Kolonell certificate verifiable online, not a state diploma. It shows an employer that you completed 2 projects graded against a rubric, which often weighs more than a bare "Excel skills" line on a CV.
How do I pay?
With Wave or Orange Money: 75,000 FCFA for this course, or 350,000 FCFA instead of 450,000 for the full 5-level track.
Take the next step. Enroll in Practical Excel: tables, formulas and analysis for work: 14 hours, 75,000 FCFA (115 EUR), verifiable certificate included. Pay with Wave or Orange Money. Questions? WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
