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Senegal Country Guide
Explore Senegal in Africa
The topography includes generally low, rolling, plains rising to foothills in southeast. The average density of population is approximately 66 per km². The notable climate conditions in Senegal can be described as tropical with hot, humid, rainy season (May to November) has strong southeast winds and dry season (December to April) dominated by hot, dry, harmattan wind. Possible natural disasters include lowlands seasonally flooded or periodic droughts.
To reach someone in Senegal dial +221 prior to a number. There are 278,800 installed telephones. And there are 6,902,000 registered mobile phones. The cellular networks commonly support frequencies of 900 MHz. Websites registered in this country end with the top level domain ".sn". If you want to bring electric equipment on your trip (e.g. laptop power supply), note the local power outlet of 230V - 50Hz.
About the flag and history of Senegal
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.
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 joined with The Gambia to form the nominal confederation of Senegambia in 1982. The envisaged integration of the two countries was never carried out, and the union was dissolved in 1989. The Movement of Democratic Forces in the Casamance (MFDC) has led a low-level separatist insurgency in southern Senegal since the 1980s, and several peace deals have failed to resolve the conflict. Nevertheless, Senegal remains one of the most stable democracies in Africa and has a long history of participating in international peacekeeping and regional mediation. Senegal was ruled by a Socialist Party for 40 years until Abdoulaye WADE was elected president in 2000. He was reelected in 2007 and during his two terms amended Senegal's constitution over a dozen times to increase executive power and to weaken the opposition. His decision to run for a third presidential term sparked a large public backlash that led to his defeat in a March 2012 runoff election with Macky SALL.
Geography Quick-Facts
| Summary | Continent: Africa Neighbours: Guinea, Mauritania, Guinea-Bissau, Gambia, Mali Capital: Dakar |
| Size | 196,190 square kilometers (km² or sqkm) or 75,749 square miles (mi² or sqmi) slightly smaller than South Dakota |
| Population | 12,853,000 |
| Currency | Name Franc, Currency Code:XOF |
| Country Top Level Domain (cTLD) | .sn |
| Telephone Country Prefix | +221 |
| Mobile Phone Connections | 6,902,000 |
| Landline Phone Connections | 278,800 |
Country Position in World Rankings
Information about single country attributes and how these compare against the rest of the world. The information below is compiled with data from 2013. As such, it may differ a bit to the Information above in the text (which is from 2010).
Geography
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Area | 196,722 (sq km) | 88 |
People and Society
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 13,300,410 | 71 |
| Population growth rate | 2.51 (%) | 29 |
| Birth rate | 35.64 (births/1,000 population) | 24 |
| Death rate | 8.85 (deaths/1,000 population) | 71 |
| Net migration rate | -1.74 (migrant(s)/1,000 population) | 155 |
| Maternal mortality rate | 370.00 (deaths/100,000 live births) | 27 |
| Infant mortality rate | 53.93 (deaths/1,000 live births) | 36 |
| Life expectancy at birth | 60.57 (years) | 192 |
| Total fertility rate | 4.61 (children born/woman) | 27 |
| Health expenditures | 5.70 (% of GDP) | 116 |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate | 0.90 (%) | 50 |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | 59,000 | 56 |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths | 2,600 | 50 |
| Obesity - adult prevalence rate | 6.80 (%) | 145 |
| Children under the age of 5 years underweight | 19.20 (%) | 37 |
| Education expenditures | 5.60 (% of GDP) | 50 |
| Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 | 14.80 (%) | 85 |
Economy
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| GDP (purchasing power parity) | 27,010,000,000 | 118 |
| GDP - real growth rate | 3.50 (%) | 98 |
| GDP - per capita (PPP) | 2,100 | 193 |
| Labor force | 5,852,000 | 67 |
| Unemployment rate | 48.00 (%) | 193 |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index | 41.30 | 54 |
| Investment (gross fixed) | 24.80 (% of GDP) | 54 |
| Taxes and other revenues | 23.90 (% of GDP) | 131 |
| Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) | -5.80 (% of GDP) | 168 |
| Public debt | 33.60 (% of GDP) | 106 |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.50 (%) | 26 |
| Central bank discount rate | 4.25 (%) | 87 |
| Commercial bank prime lending rate | 14.50 (%) | 49 |
| Stock of narrow money | 3,538,000,000 | 114 |
| Stock of broad money | 5,818,000,000 | 122 |
| Stock of domestic credit | 4,315,000,000 | 119 |
| Industrial production growth rate | 4.90 (%) | 61 |
| Current account balance | -1,298,000,000 | 120 |
| Exports | 2,458,000,000 | 138 |
| Imports | 5,109,000,000 | 129 |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | 2,250,000,000 | 120 |
| Debt - external | 4,117,000,000 | 127 |
Energy
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Electricity - production | 2,608,000,000 (kWh) | 131 |
| Electricity - consumption | 2,123,000,000 (kWh) | 140 |
| Electricity - installed generating capacity | 638,000 (kW) | 131 |
| Electricity - from fossil fuels | 99.70 (% of total installed capacity) | 49 |
| Electricity - from other renewable sources | 0.30 (% of total installed capacity) | 82 |
| Crude oil - imports | 13,040 (bbl/day) | 76 |
| Refined petroleum products - production | 16,850 (bbl/day) | 98 |
| Refined petroleum products - consumption | 40,600 (bbl/day) | 109 |
| Refined petroleum products - exports | 7,046 (bbl/day) | 93 |
| Refined petroleum products - imports | 16,700 (bbl/day) | 111 |
| Natural gas - production | 50,000,000 (cu m) | 84 |
| Natural gas - consumption | 50,000,000 (cu m) | 109 |
| Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy | 6,679,000 (Mt) | 114 |
Communications
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Telephones - main lines in use | 346,400 | 110 |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 9,353,000 | 79 |
| Internet hosts | 237 | 198 |
| Internet users | 1,818,000 | 76 |
Transportation
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Airports | 20 | 136 |
| Railways | 906 (km) | 92 |
| Roadways | 14,008 (km) | 125 |
| Waterways | 1,000 (km) | 65 |
| Merchant marine | 1 | 153 |
Military
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Military expenditures | 1.60 (% of GDP) | 92 |
Data based on CIA facts book 2010 & 2013, wikipedia, national statistical offices and their census releases
List of current world heritage sites
| Name | Since |
|---|---|
| Bassari Country: Bassari, Fula and Bedik Cultural Landscapes The site, located in south-east Senegal, includes three geographical areas: the Bassari–Salémata area, the Bedik–Bandafassi area and the Fula–Dindéfello area, each with its specific morphological traits. The Bassari, Fula and Bedik peoples settled fr ... | 2012 |
| Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary Situated in the Senegal River delta, the Djoudj Sanctuary is a wetland of 16,000 ha, comprising a large lake surrounded by streams, ponds and backwaters. It forms a living but fragile sanctuary for some 1.5 million birds, such as the white pelican, t ... | 1981 |
| Island of Gorée The island of Gorée lies off the coast of Senegal, opposite Dakar. From the 15th to the 19th century, it was the largest slave-trading centre on the African coast. Ruled in succession by the Portuguese, Dutch, English and French, its architecture is ... | 1978 |
| Island of Saint-Louis Founded as a French colonial settlement in the 17th century, Saint-Louis was urbanised in the mid-19th century. It was the capital of Senegal from 1872 to 1957 and played an important cultural and economic role in the whole of West Africa. The locati ... | 2000 |
| Niokolo-Koba National Park Located in a well-watered area along the banks of the Gambia river, the gallery forests and savannahs of Niokolo-Koba National Park have a very rich fauna, among them Derby elands (largest of the antelopes), chimpanzees, lions, leopards and a large p ... | 1981 |
| Saloum Delta Fishing and shellfish gathering have sustained human life in the 5,000 km2 property, which is formed by the arms of three rivers. The site comprises brackish channels encompassing over 200 islands and islets, mangrove forest, an Atlantic marine envir ... | 2011 |