Senegal
Republic of SenegalRepublique du Senegal
presidential republicIndependence 4 April 1960 (from France)
Senegal as the 2022 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 172 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.
field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.
No fields match. Try a shorter word.
Introduction
1 fieldBackground
Senegal is one of the few countries in the world with evidence of continuous human life from the Paleolithic era to present. Between the 14th and 16th centuries, the Jolof Empire ruled most of Senegal. Starting in the 15th century, Portugal, the Netherlands, France, and Great Britain traded along the Senegalese coast. Senegal’s location on the western tip of Africa made it a favorable base for the European slave trade.
European powers used the Senegalese island of Goree as a base to purchase slaves from the warring chiefdoms on the mainland, and at the height of the slave trade in Senegal, over one-third of the Senegalese population was enslaved. In 1815, France abolished slavery and began expanding inland. During the second half of the 19th century, France took possession of Senegal as a French colony. In 1959, the French colonies of Senegal and French Sudan were merged and granted independence in 1960 as the Mali Federation.
The union broke up after only a few months. In 1982, Senegal joined with The Gambia to form the nominal confederation of Senegambia. The envisaged integration of the two countries was never implemented, and the union dissolved in 1989.
Since the 1980s, the Movement of Democratic Forces in the Casamance - a separatist movement based in southern Senegal - has led a low-level insurgency. Several attempts at reaching a comprehensive peace agreement have failed. Since 2012, despite sporadic incidents of violence, an unofficial cease-fire has remained largely in effect. Senegal is one of the most stable democracies in Africa and has a long history of participating in international peacekeeping and regional mediation.
The Socialist Party of Senegal ruled for 40 years until Abdoulaye WADE was elected president in 2000 and re-elected in 2007. WADE amended Senegal's constitution over a dozen times to increase executive power and weaken the opposition. In 2012, WADE’s decision to run for a third presidential term sparked public backlash that led to his defeat to current President Macky SALL. A 2016 constitutional referendum limited future presidents to two consecutive five-year terms. The change, however, does not apply to SALL's first term. In February 2019, SALL won his bid for reelection; his second term will end in 2024.
Geography
Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania
20 fieldsLand useshare of 196,722 sq km
Climate
- tropical;
- hot, humid;
- rainy season (May to November) has strong southeast winds;
- dry season (December to April) dominated by hot, dry, harmattan wind
Major rivers (by length in km)
Senegal (shared with Guinea [s], Mali, and Mauritania [m] ) - 1,641 km; Gambia (shared with Guinea [s] and The Gambia [m]) - 1,094 km; note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth
Population distribution
- the population is concentrated in the west, with Dakar anchoring a well-defined core area;
- approximately 70% of the population is rural as shown in this population distribution map
Geography - note
westernmost country on the African continent; The Gambia is almost an enclave within Senegal
People and Society
38 fieldsAge structuremale left, female right · (2020 est.)
Per 1,000 population(2022 est.)
Male · female
Ethnic groups(2019 est.)
Religions
Muslim 97.2% (most adhere to one of the four main Sufi brotherhoods), Christian 2.7% (mostly Roman Catholic) (2019 est.)
Demographic profile
Senegal has a large and growing youth population but has not been successful in developing its potential human capital. Senegal’s high total fertility rate of almost 4.5 children per woman continues to bolster the country’s large youth cohort – more than 60% of the population is under the age of 25.
Fertility remains high because of the continued desire for large families, the low use of family planning, and early childbearing. Because of the country’s high illiteracy rate (more than 40%), high unemployment (even among university graduates), and widespread poverty, Senegalese youths face dim prospects; women are especially disadvantaged.
Senegal historically was a destination country for economic migrants, but in recent years West African migrants more often use Senegal as a transit point to North Africa – and sometimes illegally onward to Europe. The country also has been host to several thousand black Mauritanian refugees since they were expelled from their homeland during its 1989 border conflict with Senegal.
The country’s economic crisis in the 1970s stimulated emigration; departures accelerated in the 1990s. Destinations shifted from neighboring countries, which were experiencing economic decline, civil wars, and increasing xenophobia, to Libya and Mauritania because of their booming oil industries and to developed countries (most notably former colonial ruler France, as well as Italy and Spain). The latter became attractive in the 1990s because of job opportunities and their periodic regularization programs (legalizing the status of illegal migrants).
Additionally, about 16,000 Senegalese refugees still remain in The Gambia and Guinea-Bissau as a result of more than 30 years of fighting between government forces and rebel separatists in southern Senegal’s Casamance region.
Population distribution
- the population is concentrated in the west, with Dakar anchoring a well-defined core area;
- approximately 70% of the population is rural as shown in this population distribution map
Sex ratio
- at birth:
- 1.05 male(s)/female
- 0-14 years:
- 1.04 male(s)/female
- 15-24 years:
- 1.02 male(s)/female
- 25-54 years:
- 0.88 male(s)/female
- 55-64 years:
- 0.76 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over:
- 0.74 male(s)/female
- total population:
- 0.97 male(s)/female (2022 est.)
Major infectious diseases
- degree of risk:
- very high (2020)
- food or waterborne diseases:
- bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
- vectorborne diseases:
- malaria and dengue fever
- water contact diseases:
- schistosomiasis
- animal contact diseases:
- rabies
- respiratory diseases:
- meningococcal meningitis
note: on 21 March 2022, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a Travel Alert for polio in Africa; Senegal is currently considered a high risk to travelers for circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses (cVDPV); vaccine-derived poliovirus (VDPV) is a strain of the weakened poliovirus that was initially included in oral polio vaccine (OPV) and that has changed over time and behaves more like the wild or naturally occurring virus ;
this means it can be spread more easily to people who are unvaccinated against polio and who come in contact with the stool or respiratory secretions, such as from a sneeze, of an “infected” person who received oral polio vaccine; the CDC recommends that before any international travel, anyone unvaccinated, incompletely vaccinated, or with an unknown polio vaccination status should complete the routine polio vaccine series;
before travel to any high-risk destination, the CDC recommends that adults who previously completed the full, routine polio vaccine series receive a single, lifetime booster dose of polio vaccine
Alcohol consumption per capita
- total:
- 0.25 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
- beer:
- 0.21 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
- wine:
- 0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
- spirits:
- 0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
- other alcohols:
- 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Child marriage
- women married by age 15:
- 8.8%
- women married by age 18:
- 30.5%
- men married by age 18:
- 0.7% (2019 est.)
Environment
16 fieldsLand use(2018 est.)
Environment - current issues
- deforestation;
- overgrazing;
- soil erosion;
- desertification;
- periodic droughts;
- seasonal flooding;
- overfishing;
- weak environmental protective laws;
- wildlife populations threatened by poaching
Environment - international agreements
- party to:
- Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
- signed, but not ratified:
- none of the selected agreements
Air pollutants
- particulate matter emissions:
- 37.52 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)
- carbon dioxide emissions:
- 10.9 megatons (2016 est.)
- methane emissions:
- 11.74 megatons (2020 est.)
Climate
- tropical;
- hot, humid;
- rainy season (May to November) has strong southeast winds;
- dry season (December to April) dominated by hot, dry, harmattan wind
Urbanization
- urban population:
- 49.6% of total population (2023)
- rate of urbanization:
- 3.59% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major infectious diseases
- degree of risk:
- very high (2020)
- food or waterborne diseases:
- bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
- vectorborne diseases:
- malaria and dengue fever
- water contact diseases:
- schistosomiasis
- animal contact diseases:
- rabies
- respiratory diseases:
- meningococcal meningitis
note: on 21 March 2022, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a Travel Alert for polio in Africa; Senegal is currently considered a high risk to travelers for circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses (cVDPV); vaccine-derived poliovirus (VDPV) is a strain of the weakened poliovirus that was initially included in oral polio vaccine (OPV) and that has changed over time and behaves more like the wild or naturally occurring virus ;
this means it can be spread more easily to people who are unvaccinated against polio and who come in contact with the stool or respiratory secretions, such as from a sneeze, of an “infected” person who received oral polio vaccine; the CDC recommends that before any international travel, anyone unvaccinated, incompletely vaccinated, or with an unknown polio vaccination status should complete the routine polio vaccine series;
before travel to any high-risk destination, the CDC recommends that adults who previously completed the full, routine polio vaccine series receive a single, lifetime booster dose of polio vaccine
Food insecurity
severe localized food insecurity: due to localized shortfalls in cereal production and reduced incomes - according to the latest analysis, about 881,000 people are estimated to be in need of humanitarian assistance between June and August 2022, mostly on account of localized shortfalls in cereal production in 2021 and reduced incomes owing to the impact of the COVID‑19 pandemic (2022)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Senegal (shared with Guinea [s], Mali, and Mauritania [m] ) - 1,641 km; Gambia (shared with Guinea [s] and The Gambia [m]) - 1,094 km; note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth
Total water withdrawal
- municipal:
- 98 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
- industrial:
- 58 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
- agricultural:
- 2.065 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)
Government
Presidential republic; President Macky SALL (since 2 April 2012); Prime Minister Amadou BA (since 17 September 2022)
22 fieldsPresidential electionpercent of vote
National Assembly resultspercent of vote
Composition: men 95, women 70, percent of women 42.4% (2022)
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
- etymology:
- named for the Senegal River that forms the northern border of the country;
- many theories exist for the origin of the river name;
- perhaps the most widely cited derives the name from "Azenegue," the Portuguese appellation for the Berber Zenaga people who lived north of the river
Capital
- name:
- Dakar
- geographic coordinates:
- 14 44 N, 17 38 W
- time difference:
- UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
- etymology:
- the Atlantic coast trading settlement of Ndakaaru came to be called "Dakar" by French colonialists
Administrative divisions
14 regions (regions, singular - region); Dakar, Diourbel, Fatick, Kaffrine, Kaolack, Kedougou, Kolda, Louga, Matam, Saint-Louis, Sedhiou, Tambacounda, Thies, Ziguinchor
Independence
4 April 1960 (from France); note - complete independence achieved upon dissolution of federation with Mali on 20 August 1960
Constitution
- history:
- previous 1959 (preindependence), 1963; latest adopted by referendum 7 January 2001, promulgated 22 January 2001
- amendments:
- proposed by the president of the republic or by the National Assembly;
- passage requires Assembly approval and approval in a referendum;
- the president can bypass a referendum and submit an amendment directly to the Assembly, which requires at least three-fifths majority vote;
- the republican form of government is not amendable;
- amended several times, last in 2019
Legal system
civil law system based on French law; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Court
International law organization participation
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
Citizenship
- citizenship by birth:
- no
- citizenship by descent only:
- at least one parent must be a citizen of Senegal
- dual citizenship recognized:
- no, but Senegalese citizens do not automatically lose their citizenship if they acquire citizenship in another state
- residency requirement for naturalization:
- 5 years
Executive branch
- chief of state:
- President Macky SALL (since 2 April 2012)
- head of government:
- Prime Minister Amadou BA (since 17 September 2022)
- cabinet:
- Council of Ministers appointed by the president
- elections/appointments:
- president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a single renewable 5-year term;
- election last held on 24 February 2019 (next to be held in February 2024)
- election results:
- Macky SALL elected president in first round;
- percent of vote - Macky SALL (APR) 58.3%, Idrissa SECK (Rewmi) 20.5%, Ousmane SONKO (PASTEF) 15.7%, other 5.5% (2019)
Legislative branch
- description:
- unicameral National Assembly or Assemblée Nationale (165 seats; 112 members including 15 representing Senegalese diaspora directly elected by plurality vote in single- and multi-seat constituencies and 53 members directly elected by proportional representation vote in a single nationwide constituency; member term is 5-years)
- elections:
- National Assembly - last held on 31 July 2022 (next to be held in July 2027) (2022)
- election results:
- National Assembly results - percent of vote by party/coalition - BBY 46.6%, YAW 32.9%, WS 14.5%, other 6%;
- seats by party/coalition - BBY 82, YAW 56, WS 24, other 3;
- composition - men 95, women 70, percent of women 42.4% (2022)
Judicial branch
- highest court(s):
- Supreme Court or Cour Supreme (consists of the court president and 12 judges and organized into civil and commercial, criminal, administrative, and social chambers);
- Constitutional Council or Conseil Constitutionel (consists of 7 members, including the court president, vice president, and 5 judges)
- judge selection and term of office:
- Supreme Court judges appointed by the president of the republic upon recommendation of the Superior Council of the Magistrates, a body chaired by the president and minister of justice;
- judge tenure varies, with mandatory retirement either at 65 or 68 years;
- Constitutional Council members appointed - 5 by the president and 2 by the National Assembly speaker;
- judges serve 6-year terms, with renewal of 2 members every 2 years
- subordinate courts:
- High Court of Justice (for crimes of high treason by the president);
- Courts of Appeal;
- Court of Auditors;
- assize courts;
- regional and district courts;
- Labor Court
Political parties and leaders
- Alliance for Citizenship and Work or ACT [Abdoul MBAYE]
- Alliance for the Republic-Yakaar or APR [Macky SALL]
- Alliance of Forces of Progress or AFP [Moustapha NIASSE]
- And-Jef/African Party for Democracy and Socialism or AJ/PADS [Landing SAVANE]
- Benno Bokk Yakaar or BBY (United in Hope) [Mahammed DIONNE] (coalition includes AFP, APR, BGC, LD-MPT, PIT, PS, and UNP)
- Bokk Gis Gis coalition [Pape DIOP]
- Citizen Movement for National Reform or MCRN-Bes Du Nakk [Mansour Sy DJAMIL]
- Dare the Future movement [Aissata Tall SALL]
- Democratic League-Labor Party Movement or LD-MPT [Mamadou NDOYE]
- Democratic Renaissance Congress [NA]
- Front for Socialism and Democracy/Benno Jubel or FSD/BJ [Cheikh Abdoulaye Bamba DIEYE]
- Gainde Centrist Bloc or BCG [Jean-Paul DIAS Mendes]
- General Alliance for the Interests of the Republic or AGIR [Thierno BOCOUM]
- Grand Party or GP [Malick GAKOU]
- Independence and Labor Party or PIT [Maguette THIAM]
- Jotna Coalition [Dr Abdoulaye Niane]
- Liberate the People (Yewwi Askan Wi) or YAW [Barthelemy DIAS, Ousmane SONKO, Khalifa SALL]
- Madicke 2019 coalition [Madicke NIANG]
- National Union for the People or UNP [Abdoul MBAYE]
- Only Senegal Movement [Pierre Goudiaby ATEPA]
- Party for Truth and Development or PVD [Cheikh Ahmadou Kara MBAKE]
- Party of Unity and Rally or PUR [Cheikh Mouhamadou Moustapha SY]
- Patriotic Convergence Kaddu Askan Wi or CP-Kaddu Askan Wi [Abdoulaye BALDE]
- Patriots of Senegal for Ethics, Work and Fraternity or PASTEF [Ousmane SONKO]
- Rewmi Party [Idrissa SECK]
- Save Senegal (Wallu Senegal Grand Coalition) or WS [Abdoulaye WADE] (coalition includes PDS, Jotna Coalition, Democratic Renaissance Congress)
- Senegalese Democratic Party or PDS [Abdoulaye WADE]
- Socialist Party or PS [Ousmane Tanor DIENG]
- Tekki Movement [Mamadou Lamine DIALLO]
International organization participation
ACP, AfDB, AU, CD, CPLP (associate), ECOWAS, EITI (candidate country), FAO, FZ, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, MONUSCO, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNHRC, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Mansour Elimane KANE (since 6 January 2020)
- chancery:
- 2215 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007
- telephone:
- [1] (202) 234-0540
- FAX:
- [1] (202) 629-2961
- email address and website:
- [email protected]; http://www.ambasenegal-us.org/index.php
- consulate(s) general:
- Houston, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Michael RAYNOR (since February 2022); note - also accredited to Guinea-Bissau
- embassy:
- Route des Almadies, Dakar
- mailing address:
- 2130 Dakar Place, Washington DC 20521-2130
- telephone:
- [221] 33-879-4000
- email address and website:
- [email protected]; https://sn.usembassy.gov/
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;
- green represents Islam, progress, and hope;
- yellow signifies natural wealth and progress;
- red symbolizes sacrifice and determination;
- the star denotes unity and hope
note: uses the popular Pan-African colors of Ethiopia; the colors from left to right are the same as those of neighboring Mali and the reverse of those on the flag of neighboring Guinea
National anthem
- name:
- "Pincez Tous vos Koras, Frappez les Balafons" (Pluck Your Koras, Strike the Balafons)
- lyrics/music:
- Leopold Sedar SENGHOR/Herbert PEPPER
note: adopted 1960; lyrics written by Leopold Sedar SENGHOR, Senegal's first president; the anthem sometimes played incorporating the Koras (harp-like stringed instruments) and Balafons (types of xylophones) mentioned in the title
National heritage
- total World Heritage Sites:
- 7 (5 cultural, 2 natural)
- selected World Heritage Site locales:
- Island of Gorée (c);
- Niokolo-Koba National Park (n);
- Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary (n);
- Island of Saint-Louis (c);
- Stone Circles of Senegambia (c);
- Saloum Delta (c);
- Bassari Country:
Economy
Senegal’s economy is driven by mining, construction, tourism, fisheries and agriculture, which are the primary sources of employment in rural areas.
34 fieldsGDP - composition, by sector of origin(2017 est.)
Trading partnersexports left, imports right
By end use% of GDP · (2017 est.)
Budget(2017 est.)
Economic overview
Senegal’s economy is driven by mining, construction, tourism, fisheries and agriculture, which are the primary sources of employment in rural areas. The country's key export industries include phosphate mining, fertilizer production, agricultural products and commercial fishing and Senegal is also working on oil exploration projects.
It relies heavily on donor assistance, remittances and foreign direct investment. Senegal reached a growth rate of 7% in 2017, due in part to strong performance in agriculture despite erratic rainfall.
President Macky SALL, who was elected in March 2012 under a reformist policy agenda, inherited an economy with high energy costs, a challenging business environment, and a culture of overspending. President SALL unveiled an ambitious economic plan, the Emerging Senegal Plan (ESP), which aims to implement priority economic reforms and investment projects to increase economic growth while preserving macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability.
Bureaucratic bottlenecks and a challenging business climate are among the perennial challenges that may slow the implementation of this plan.
Senegal receives technical support from the IMF under a Policy Support Instrument (PSI) to assist with implementation of the ESP. The PSI implementation continues to be satisfactory as concluded by the IMF’s fifth review in December 2017. Financial markets have signaled confidence in Senegal through successful Eurobond issuances in 2014, 2017, and 2018.
The government is focusing on 19 projects under the ESP to continue The government’s goal under the ESP is structural transformation of the economy. Key projects include the Thiès-Touba Highway, the new international airport opened in December 2017, and upgrades to energy infrastructure.
The cost of electricity is a chief constraint for Senegal’s development. Electricity prices in Senegal are among the highest in the world. Power Africa, a US presidential initiative led by USAID, supports Senegal’s plans to improve reliability and increase generating capacity.
Credit ratings
Moody's rating: Ba3 (2017); Standard & Poors rating: B+ (2000) note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.
Agricultural products
groundnuts, watermelons, rice, sugar cane, cassava, millet, maize, onions, sorghum, vegetables
Industries
agricultural and fish processing, phosphate mining, fertilizer production, petroleum refining, zircon, and gold mining, construction materials, ship construction and repair
Imports - commodities
refined petroleum, crude petroleum, rice, cars, malt extract, clothing and apparel (2019)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold
$1.827 billion (31 December 2017 est.) · $116.9 million (31 December 2016 est.)
Exchange rates
Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 617.4 (2017 est.) · 593.01 (2016 est.) · 593.01 (2015 est.) · 591.45 (2014 est.) · 494.42 (2013 est.)
Energy
11 fieldsElectrification% of population · (2019)
Installed generating capacity, 1.312 million kW(2020 est.)
Coal
- production:
- 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
- consumption:
- 894,000 metric tons (2020 est.)
- exports:
- 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
- imports:
- 894,000 metric tons (2020 est.)
- proven reserves:
- 0 metric tons (2019 est.)
Petroleum
- total petroleum production:
- 0 bbl/day (2021 est.)
- refined petroleum consumption:
- 57,500 bbl/day (2019 est.)
- crude oil and lease condensate exports:
- 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
- crude oil and lease condensate imports:
- 20,500 bbl/day (2018 est.)
- crude oil estimated reserves:
- 0 barrels (2021 est.)
Natural gas
- production:
- 60.003 million cubic meters (2019 est.)
- consumption:
- 60.003 million cubic meters (2019 est.)
- exports:
- 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
- imports:
- 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
- proven reserves:
- 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions
10.696 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
- from coal and metallurgical coke:
- 1.955 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
- from petroleum and other liquids:
- 8.64 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
- from consumed natural gas:
- 101,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
Communications
7 fieldsPer 100 inhabitants(2020 est.)
Telecommunication systems
- general assessment:
- Senegal’s telecom market continues to show steady growth in all sectors;
- this has been supported by the particular demands made on consumers during the pandemic, which resulted in a particularly strong increase in the number of subscribers;
- the mobile subscriber base increased 6.7% in 2020, year-on-year, and by 4.1% in 2021, while the number of fixed broadband subscribers increased 17.5% year-on-year in 2021;
- mobile internet platforms account for the vast majority of all internet accesses;
- quality of service issues continue to plague the market, with the regulator periodically issuing fines to the market players (2022)
- domestic:
- generally reliable urban system with a fiber-optic network;
- about two-thirds of all fixed-line connections are in Dakar;
- mobile-cellular service is steadily displacing fixed-line service, even in urban areas;
- fixed-line roughly 1 per 100 and mobile-cellular 114 per 100 persons (2020)
- international:
- country code - 221;
- landing points for the ACE, Atlantis-2, MainOne and SAT-3/WASC submarine cables providing connectivity from South Africa, numerous western African countries, Europe and South America;
- satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2019)
note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced a downturn, particularly in mobile device production;
progress toward 5G implementation has resumed, as well as upgrades to infrastructure; consumer spending on telecom services has increased due to the surge in demand for capacity and bandwidth; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home is still evident, and the spike in this area has seen growth opportunities for development of new tools and increased services
Broadcast media
- state-run Radiodiffusion Television Senegalaise (RTS) broadcasts TV programs from five cities in Senegal;
- in most regions of the country, viewers can receive TV programming from at least 7 private broadcasters;
- a wide range of independent TV programming is available via satellite;
- RTS operates a national radio network and a number of regional FM stations;
- at least 7 community radio stations and 18 private-broadcast radio stations are available;
- transmissions of at least 5 international broadcasters are accessible on FM in Dakar (2019)
Transportation
11 fieldsAirports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right
Networkskm
National air transport system
- number of registered air carriers:
- 2 (2020); inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 11
- annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:
- 21,038 (2018)
- annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:
- 40,000 (2018) mt-km
Roadways
- total:
- 16,665 km (2017)
- paved:
- 6,126 km (2017) (includes 241 km of expressways)
- unpaved:
- 10,539 km (2017)
Military and Security
7 fieldsPersonnel strengthsone square, 100 people · (2022)
Military and security forces
- Senegalese Armed Forces (les Forces Armées Sénégalaises, FAS): Army, Senegalese National Navy (Marine Senegalaise, MNS), Senegalese Air Force (l'Armee de l'Air du Senegal), National Gendarmerie (includes Territorial and Mobile components);
- Ministry of Interior: National Police (2022)
note: the National Police operates in major cities, while the Gendarmerie primarily operates outside urban areas
Military equipment inventories and acquisitions
- the FAS inventory includes mostly older or second-hand equipment from a variety of countries, including ;
- in recent years, the FAS has undertaken a modernization program;
- since 2010, it has received small amounts of newer equipment from more than 10 countries, with France as the leading supplier (2022)
Military service age and obligation
- 18 years of age for voluntary military service for men and women;
- 20 years of age for selective conscript service;
- 2-year service obligation;
- women have been accepted into military service since 2008 (2022)
Military deployments
- 750 Gambia (ECOMIG);
- 970 Mali (MINUSMA);
- note - Senegal also has about 1,100 police deployed on various UN peacekeeping missions (2022)
Military - note
- Senegalese security forces continue to be engaged in a low-level counterinsurgency campaign in the southern Casamance region against various factions of the separatist Movement of Democratic Forces of the Casamance (MDFC);
- while violent incidents have decreased since a tacit cease-fire was reached in 2012, the insurgency, which began in 1982, continued as of mid-2022 and remained one of longest running low-level conflicts in the world, claiming more than 5,000 lives and leaving another 60,000 displaced (2022)
note: in August 2022, a representative of the Senegalese Government and a leader of the MFDC signed an agreement in which the MFDC pledged to lay down its arms and work towards a permanent peace
Terrorism
1 fieldTransnational Issues
4 fieldsDisputes - international
Senegal-Guinea-Bissau : rebels from the Movement of Democratic Forces in the Casamance find refuge in Guinea-Bissau
Refugees and internally displaced persons
- refugees (country of origin):
- 11,490 (Mauritania) (2022)
- IDPs:
- 8,400 (2021)
Trafficking in persons
- tier rating:
- Tier 2 Watch List — Senegal does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so;
- efforts include establishing an anti-trafficking database;
- planning the third phase of its program to remove vulnerable children, including trafficking victims, from the streets of major cities;
- launching an emergency campaign to place vulnerable children and forced begging victims in shelters due to COVID 19 pandemic;
- however, the government rarely proactively investigated or prosecuted traffickers exploiting children in forced begging;
- authorities did not take action against officials who refused to investigate such cases;
- officials only applied adequate prison terms in accordance with the 2005 anti-trafficking law to two convicted traffickers;
- authorities did not identify any adult trafficking victims;
- government officials continued to have a limited knowledge of trafficking;
- Senegal was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List (2020)
- trafficking profile:
- Senegal is a source, transit, and destination country for children and women who are subjected to forced begging, forced labor, and sex trafficking;
- traffickers subject Senegalese children to forced labor in domestic service, mining, and prostitution;
- some Senegalese boys from Quranic schools and boys from The Gambia, Mali, Guinea-Bissau, and Guinea are forced to beg;
- Senegalese women and girls are forced into domestic servitude in neighboring countries, Europe, and the Middle East, while others are sexually exploited in Senegal;
- women and girls from other West African countries are subjected to domestic servitude and sexual exploitation in Senegal;
- Ukrainian and Chinese women are exploited for sex trafficking in bars and nightclubs;
- North Korean workers are forced to work in construction
Illicit drugs
major transit point on the cocaine route from South America to Europe; the third-largest cannabis-producing country in West Africa
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Senegal.” The World Factbook 2022. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/senegal/2022.