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Travel to Senegal — Unbiased reviews and great deals from
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Republic of Senegal
National name: République du
Sénegal
President: Abdoulaye Wade (2000)
Prime Minister: Macky Sall
(2004)
Current government officials
Land area: 74,131 sq mi (191,999 sq km);
total area: 75,749 sq mi (196,190 sq km)
Population (2007 est.): 12,521,851
(growth rate: 2.6%); birth rate: 37.4/1000; infant mortality rate:
60.2/1000; life expectancy: 56.7; density per sq mi: 169
Capital and largest city (2003 est.):
Dakar, 2,476,400
Monetary unit: CFA Franc
Languages:
French (official); Wolof, Pulaar, Jola,
Mandinka
Ethnicity/race:
Wolof 43.3%, Fulani 23.8%, Serer 14.7%, Diola
3.7%, Mandingo 3%, Soninke 1.1%, European and Lebanese 1%, other
9.4%
Religions:
Islam 94%, Christian 5% (mostly Roman
Catholic), indigenous 1%
Literacy rate: 40% (2003 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2007
est.): $20.61 billion; per capita $1,700. Real growth rate:
5%. Inflation: 5.9%. Unemployment: 48%; note -
urban youth 45% (2007 est.). Arable land: 13%.
Agriculture: peanuts, millet, corn, sorghum, rice, cotton,
tomatoes, green vegetables; cattle, poultry, pigs; fish. Labor
force: 4.82 million (2005 est.); agriculture 77%, industry and
services 23% (1990 est.). Industries: agricultural and fish
processing, phosphate mining, fertilizer production, petroleum
refining, construction materials, ship construction and repair.
Natural resources: fish, phosphates, iron ore.
Exports: $1.725 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): fish, groundnuts
(peanuts), petroleum products, phosphates, cotton. Imports:
$3.673 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): foods and beverages, capital
goods, fuels. Major trading partners: India, Mali, France,
Italy, Spain, Guinea-Bissau, Gambia, Nigeria, Thailand (2004).
Communications: Telephones: main lines
in use: 282,600 (2006); mobile cellular: 2.983 million (2006).
Radio broadcast stations: AM 8, FM 20, shortwave 1 (2001).
Radios: 1.24 million (1997). Television broadcast
stations: 1 (1997). Televisions: 361,000 (1997).
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 199 (2007). Internet
users: 650,000 (2006).
Transportation: Railways: total: 906 km
(2002). Highways: total: 13,576 km; paved: 3,972 km;
unpaved: 9,604 km (2003). Waterways: 897 km total; 785 km on
the Senegal river, and 112 km on the Saloum river. Ports and
harbors: Dakar, Kaolack, Matam, Podor, Richard Toll,
Saint-Louis, Ziguinchor. Airports: 20 (2007).
International disputes:separatist war in
Casamance region results in refugees and cross-border raids, arms
smuggling, other illegal activities, and political instability in
Guinea-Bissau.
Major sources and definitions
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Geography
The capital of Senegal, Dakar, is the westernmost point in Africa. The
country, slightly smaller than South Dakota, surrounds Gambia on three
sides and is bordered on the north by Mauritania, on the east by Mali, and
on the south by Guinea and Guinea-Bissau.
Senegal is mainly a low-lying country, with a semidesert area in the
north and northeast and forests in the southwest. The largest rivers
include the Senegal in the north and the Casamance in the southern
tropical climate region.
Government
Multiparty democractic republic.
History
The Toucouleur people, among the early inhabitants of Senegal,
converted to Islam in the 11th century, although their religious beliefs
retained strong elements of animism. The Portuguese had some stations on
the banks of the Senegal River in the 15th century, and the first French
settlement was made at St.-Louis in 1659. Gorée Island became a major
center for the Atlantic slave trade through the 1700s, and millions of
Africans were shipped from there to the New World. The British took parts
of Senegal at various times, but the French gained possession in 1840 and
made it part of French West Africa in 1895. In 1946, together with other
parts of French West Africa, Senegal became an overseas territory of
France. On June 20, 1960, it formed an independent republic federated with
Mali, but the federation collapsed within four months.
Although Senegal is neither a large nor a strategically located
country, it has nonetheless played a prominent role in African politics
since its independence. As a black nation that is more than 90% Muslim,
Senegal has been a diplomatic and cultural bridge between the Islamic and
black African worlds. Senegal has also maintained closer economic,
political, and cultural ties to France than probably any other former
French African colony.
Senegal's first president, Léopold Sédar Senghor, towered over the
country's political life until his voluntary retirement in 1981. He
replaced multiparty democracy with an authoritarian regime. An acclaimed
poet, Senghor sought to become a “black-skinned Frenchman,” a quest he
ultimately discovered to be impossible. An advocate of “African
socialism,” Senghor increased government involvement in the economy
through a series of four-year plans.
In 1973 Senegal and six other nations created the West African Economic
Community. When rising oil prices and fluctuations in the price of
peanuts, a major export crop, ruined the economy in the 1970s, Senghor
reversed course. He emphasized new industries such as tourism and fishing.
Politically, the so-called passive revolution allowed limited
opposition.
When the economy continued to stagnate, and with it Senghor's
popularity, he resigned after 20 years at the helm in favor of his
protégé, Abdou Diouf. Diouf, who led the country for the next 20 years,
initiated further economic and political liberalization, including the
sale of government companies and permitting the existence of political
parties. In March 2000, opposition party challenger Abdoulaye Wade won 60%
of the vote in multiparty elections. Diouf stepped aside in what was
hailed as a rare smooth transition of power in Africa. In Jan. 2001, the
Senegalese voted in a new constitution that legalized opposition parties
and granted women equal property rights with men.
In Sept. 2002, 1,863 passengers were killed when the state-owned
Joola ferry sank. The government accepted responsibility for the
disaster.
The president removed Prime Minister Idrissa Seck in April 2004. Seck
was considered Wade's rival. Wade was elected to a second term in
February, taking about 56% of the vote—enough to avoid a runoff election.
Seck placed second, with about 15%. Wade did not breeze to victory,
however, as his opponents accused him of corruption and the electorate has
grown impatient with the slow growth in the number of jobs.
See also Encyclopedia: Senegal.
U.S. State Dept. Country Notes:
Senegal
Fact Monster/Information Please®
Database, © 2007 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
More on Senegal from Infoplease:
- Senegal - Senegal Profile: Geography, History, Economy, Foreign Relations, U.S.-Senegalese Relations
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- Senegal, country, Africa: Bibliography - Bibliography See L. C. Behrman, Muslim Brotherhoods and Politics in Senegal (1970); G. W. Johnson, ...
- Senegal, river, Africa - Senegal Senegal , river, c.1,000 mi (1,610 km) long, formed in SW Mali, W Africa, by the confluence ...
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