Map of Senegal | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: The French colonies of Senegal and the French Sudan were merged in 1959 and granted their independence as the Mali Federation in 1960. The union broke up after only a few months. Senegal was ruled by the Socialist Party for 40 years until current President Abdoulaye WADE was elected in 2000. Senegal joined with The Gambia to form the nominal confederation of Senegambia in 1982 but the envisaged integration of the two countries was never carried out and the union was dissolved in 1989. The most significant threat within Senegal since the 1980s has been led by the Movement of Democratic Forces in the Casamance (MFDC). Although a peace agreement was signed in December 2004 internal rifts continue to keep the peace process deadlocked. Nevertheless Senegal remains one of the most stable democracies in Africa. Senegal has a long history of participating in international peacekeeping.


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Location: Western Africa bordering the North Atlantic Ocean between Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania

Geographic coordinates: 14 00 N 14 00 W

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 196,190 km²
Land: 192,000 km²
Water: 4,190 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than South Dakota

Land boundaries
Total: 2,640 km
Border countries: (5) The Gambia 740 km; , Guinea 330 km; , Guinea-Bissau 338 km; , Mali 419 km; , Mauritania 813 km

Coastline: 531 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

Climate: tropical; hot humid; rainy season (May to November) has strong southeast winds; dry season (December to April) dominated by hot dry harmattan wind

Terrain: generally low rolling plains rising to foothills in southeast

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Extremes highest point: unnamed feature near Nepen Diakha 581 m

Natural resources: fish phosphates iron ore

Land use
Arable land: 12.51%
Permanent crops: 0.24%
Other: 87.25% (2005)

Irrigated land: 1200 km² (2003)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: lowlands seasonally flooded; periodic droughts

Geography
Note: westernmost country on the African continent; The Gambia is almost an enclave within Senegal


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Population: 12,521,851 (July 2007 est.)
Growth rate: 2.645% (2007 est.)
Below poverty line: 54% (2001 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Senegalese (singular and plural)
Adjective: Senegalese

Ethnic groups: Wolof 43.3% Pular 23.8% Serer 14.7% Jola 3.7% Mandinka 3% Soninke 1.1% European and Lebanese 1% other 9.4%

Languages: French (official) Wolof Pulaar Jola Mandinka

Religions: Muslim 94% Christian 5% (mostly Roman Catholic) indigenous beliefs 1%

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 42% (male 2,656,122/female 2,608,423)
15-64 years: 55% (male 3,426,504/female 3,454,372)
65 years and over: 3% (male 176,877/female 199,553) (2007 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age
Total: 18.7 years
Male: 18.5 years
Female: 18.9 years (2007 est.)

Population growth rate: 2.645% (2007 est.)

Birth rate: 37.4 births/1000 population (2007 est.)

Death rate: 10.96 deaths/1000 population (2007 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1000 population (2007 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: wildlife populations threatened by poaching; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; overfishing
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.018 male/female
15-64 years: 0.992 male/female
65 years and over: 0.886 male/female
Total population: 1 male/female (2007 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 60.15 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 64.06 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 56.12 deaths/1000 live births (2007 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 56.69 years
Male: 55.34 years
Female: 58.09 years (2007 est.)

Total fertility rate: 5 children born/woman (2007 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.8% (2003 est.)
People living with hivaids: 44,000 (2003 est.)
Deaths: 3,500 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: very high
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, malaria, yellow fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and Rift Valley fever are high risks in some locations
Water contact disease: schistosomiasis
Respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis (2007)

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 39.3%
Male: 51.1%
Female: 29.2% (2002 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Senegal
Conventional short form: Senegal
Local long form: Republique du Senegal
Local short form: Senegal
Former: Senegambia (along with The Gambia); Mali Federation

Government type: republic

Capital
Name: Dakar
Geographic coordinates: 14 40 N, 17 26 W
Time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions: 11 regions (regions singular - region); Dakar Diourbel Fatick Kaolack Kolda Louga Matam Saint-Louis Tambacounda Thies Ziguinchor

Dependent areas

Independence: 4 April 1960 (from France); note - complete independence achieved upon dissolution of federation with Mali on 20 August 1960

National holiday: Independence Day 4 April (1960)

Constitution: adopted 7 January 2001

Legal system: based on French civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Court; the Council of State audits the government's accounting office; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Abdoulaye WADE (since 1 April 2000)
Head of government: Prime Minister Cheikh Hadjibou SOUMARE (since 19 June 2007)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the president
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term) under new constitution; election last held on 25 February 2007 (next to be held in 2012); prime minister appointed by the president
Election results: Abdoulaye WADE reelected president in the first round of voting; percent of vote - Abdoulaye WADE 55.9%, Idrissa SECK 14.9%, Ousmane Tanor DIENG 13.6%, Moustapha NIASSE 5.9%, other 9.7%

Legislative branch
Elections: National Assembly - last held on 3 June 2007 (next to be held 2012); note - the National Assembly in December 2005 voted to postpone legislative elections originally scheduled for 2006; legislative elections were first rescheduled to coincide with the 25 February 2007 presidential elections and later rescheduled for 3 June 2007; the June election was boycotted by 12 opposition parties, including the former ruling Socialist Party, that resulted in a record-low, 35-percent voter turnout; Senate - last held 19 August 2007 (next to be held - NA)
Election results: National Assembly results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - SOPI Coalition 131, other 19; Senate results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PDS 34, AJ/PADS 1, 65 to be appointed by the president

Judicial branch: Constitutional Court; Council of State; Court of Final Appeals or Cour de Cassation; Court of Appeals

Political parties and leaders: African Party of Independence [Majhemout DIOP]; And-Jef/African Party for Democracy and Socialism or AJ/PADS) [Landing SAVANE]; Alliance of Forces of Progress or AFP [Moustapha NIASSE]; Democratic and Patriotic Convention or CDP (also known as Garab-Gi) [Dr. Iba Der THIAM]; Democratic League-Labor Party Movement or LD-MPT [Dr. Abdoulaye BATHILY]; Front for Socialism and Democracy or FSD [Cheikh Abdoulaye Bamba DIEYE]; Gainde Centrist Bloc or BGC [Jean-Paul DIAS]; Independence and Labor Party or PIT [Amath DANSOKHO]; Jef-Jel [Talla SYLLA]; National Democratic Rally or RND [Madior DIOUF]; People's Labor Party or PTP [Elhadji DIOUF]; Reform Party or PR [Abdourahim AGNE]; Rewmi [Idrissa SECK]; Senegalese Democratic Party or PDS [Abdoulaye WADE]; Socialist Party or PS [Ousmane Tanor DIENG]; SOPI Coalition [Abdoulaye WADE] (a coalition led by the PDS); Union for Democratic Renewal or URD [Djibo Leyti KA]

International organization participation: ACCT ACP AfDB AU ECOWAS FAO FZ G-15 G-77 IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC ICCt ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO IMSO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ISO (correspondent) ITSO ITU ITUC MIGA MONUC NAM OIC OIF ONUB OPCW PCA UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO Union Latina UNMIL UNMOVIC UNOCI UNWTO UPU WADB (regional) WAEMU WCL WCO WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Amadou Lamine BA
In the us chancery: 2,112 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 234-0540
In the us fax: [1] (202) 332-6,315
In the us consulates general: Houston, New York
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Jay Thomas Smith
From the us embassy: Avenue Jean XXIII at the corner of Rue Kleber, Dakar
From the us mailing address: B. P. 49, Dakar
From the us telephone: [221] 33-823-4,296
From the us fax: [221] 33-822-2,991

Flag description: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) yellow and red with a small green five-pointed star centered in the yellow band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: In January 1994 Senegal undertook a bold and ambitious economic reform program with the support of the international donor community. This reform began with a 50% devaluation of Senegal's currency the CFA franc which was linked at a fixed rate to the French franc. Government price controls and subsidies have been steadily dismantled. After seeing its economy contract by 2.1% in 1993 Senegal made an important turnaround thanks to the reform program with real growth in GDP averaging over 5% annually during 1995-2006. Annual inflation had been pushed down to the low single digits. As a member of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) Senegal is working toward greater regional integration with a unified external tariff and a more stable monetary policy. High unemployment however continues to prompt illegal migrants to flee Senegal in search of better job opportunities in Europe. Senegal was also beset by an energy crisis that caused widespread blackouts in 2006. Senegal still relies heavily upon outside donor assistance. Under the IMF's Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) debt relief program Senegal will benefit from eradication of two-thirds of its bilateral multilateral and private-sector debt.

Real gdp purchasing power parity: $21.54 billion (2006 est.)

Real gdp growth rate: 2% (2006 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $1800 (2006 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 16.6%
Industry: 19.2%
Services: 64.1% (2006 est.)

Agriculture products: peanuts millet corn sorghum rice cotton tomatoes green vegetables; cattle poultry pigs; fish

Industries: agricultural and fish processing phosphate mining fertilizer production petroleum refining construction materials ship construction and repair

Industrial production growth rate: 3.2% (2006 est.)

Labor force: 4.723 million (2006 est.)
By occupation agriculture: 77%
By occupation industry and services: 23% (1990 est.)

Unemployment rate: 48%; note - urban youth 40% (2001 est.)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 54% (2001 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 2.7%
Highest 10: 33.4% (2001)

Distribution of family income gini index: 41.3 (2001)

Budget
Revenues: $1.975 billion
Expenditures: $2.485 billion (2006 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt: 16.3% of GDP (2006 est.)

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 2.1% (2006 est.)

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares: $NA

Current account balance: $-960 million (2006 est.)

Exports: $1.408 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Commodities: fish groundnuts (peanuts) petroleum products phosphates cotton
Partners: Mali 19.2% France 8.3% India 5.8% Gambia The 5.3% Spain 5.1% Italy 4.9% (2006)

Imports: $3.007 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Commodities: food and beverages capital goods fuels
Partners: France 25.1% UK 5.2% Thailand 4.8% China 4.5% Spain 4% (2006)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $1.334 billion (2006 est.)

Debt external: $1.437 billion (2006 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 522.89 (2006) 527.47 (2005) 528.29 (2004) 581.2 (2003) 696.99 (2002)


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Electricity
Production: 2.223 billion kWh (2005)
Consumption: 1.456 billion kWh (2005)
Exports: 0 kWh (2005)
Imports: 0 kWh (2005)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas
Production: 47.95 million m³ (2005 est.)
Consumption: 47.95 million m³ (2005 est.)
Exports: 0 m³ (2005 est.)
Imports: 0 m³ (2005)

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 282,600 (2006)
Mobile cellular: 2.983 million (2006)

Telephone system
General assessment: good system
Domestic: above-average urban system; microwave radio relay, coaxial cable and fiber-optic cable in trunk system
International: country code - 221; 4 submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Broadcast media

Internet
Country code: .sn
Hosts: 199 (2007)
Users: 650,000 (2006)

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Percent of gdp: 1.4% (2005 est.)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; conscript service obligation - 2 years (2004)

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 20 (2007)
With paved runways total: 9
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 7
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1 (2007)
With unpaved runways total: 11
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 6
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 4
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 1 (2007)

Heliports

Pipelines: gas 43 km (2006)

Railways
Total: 906 km
Narrow gauge: 906 km 1.000 meter gauge (2006)

Roadways
Total: 13,576 km
Paved: 3,972 km (includes 7 km of expressways)
Unpaved: 9,604 km (2003)

Waterways: 1000 km (primarily on Senegal Saloum and Casamance rivers) (2005)

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals: Dakar


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Disputes international: The Gambia and Guinea-Bissau attempt to stem separatist violence cross border raids and arms smuggling into their countries from Senegal's Casamance region and in 2006 respectively accepted 6,000 and 10,000 Casamance residents fleeing the conflict; 2,500 Guinea-Bissau residents fled into Senegal in 2006 to escape armed confrontations along the border

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees country of origin: 19,712 (Mauritania)
Idps: 22,400 (approximately 65% of the IDP population returned in 2005, but new displacement is occurring due to clashes between government troops and separatists in Casamance region) (2006)

Illicit drugs: transshipment point for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin and South American cocaine moving to Europe and North America; illicit cultivator of cannabis