1993 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1993 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Area
total area: 196,190 km2 land area: 192,000 km2 comparative area: slightly smaller than South Dakota
Climate
tropical; hot, humid; rainy season (December to April) has strong southeast winds; dry season (May to November) dominated by hot, dry harmattan wind
Coastline
531 km
Environment
lowlands seasonally flooded; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification
International disputes
short section of the boundary with The Gambia is indefinite; the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on 12 November 1991 rendered its decision on the Guinea-Bissau/Senegal maritime boundary in favor of Senegal - that decision has been rejected by Guinea-Bissau; boundary with Mauritania
Irrigated land
1,800 km2 (1989 est.)
Land boundaries
total 2,640 km, The Gambia 740 km, Guinea 330 km, Guinea-Bissau 338 km, Mali 419 km, Mauritania 813 km
Land use
arable land: 27% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 30% forest and woodland: 31% other: 12%
Location
Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean between Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania
Map references
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Maritime claims
contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or the edge of continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
Natural resources
fish, phosphates, iron ore
Note
The Gambia is almost an enclave
Terrain
generally low, rolling, plains rising to foothills in southeast
People and Society
Birth rate
43.42 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate
12.38 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Ethnic divisions
Wolof 36%, Fulani 17%, Serer 17%, Toucouleur 9%, Diola 9%, Mandingo 9%, European and Lebanese 1%, other 2%
Infant mortality rate
77.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Labor force
2.509 million (77% are engaged in subsistence farming; 175,000 wage earners) by occupation: private sector 40%, government and parapublic 60% note: 52% of population of working age (1985)
Languages
French (official), Wolof, Pulaar, Diola, Mandingo
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 56.01 years male: 54.59 years female: 57.48 years (1993 est.)
Literacy
age 15 and over can read and write (1990) total population: 38% male: 52% female: 25%
Nationality
noun: Senegalese (singular and plural) adjective: Senegalese
Net migration rate
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Population
8,463,225 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate
3.1% (1993 est.)
Religions
Muslim 92%, indigenous beliefs 6%, Christian 2% (mostly Roman Catholic)
Total fertility rate
6.15 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Government
Administrative divisions
10 regions (regions, singular - region); Dakar, Diourbel, Fatick, Kaolack, Kolda, Louga, Saint-Louis, Tambacounda, Thies, Ziguinchor
Capital
Dakar
Chief of State
President Abdou DIOUF (since 1 January 1981)
Constitution
3 March 1963, last revised in 1991
Digraph
SG
Diplomatic representation in US
chief of mission: Ambassador Ibra Deguene KA chancery: 2112 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 234-0540 or 0541
Executive branch
president, prime minister, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
FAX
[221] 22-29-91
Flag
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
Head of Government
Prime Minister Habib THIAM (since 7 April 1991)
Independence
20 August 1960 (from France; The Gambia and Senegal signed an agreement on 12 December 1981 that called for the creation of a loose confederation to be known as Senegambia, but the agreement was dissolved on 30 September 1989)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)
Legal system
based on French civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme Court, which also audits the government's accounting office; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch
unicameral National Assembly (Assemblee Nationale)
Member of
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEAO, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-15, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, OIC, PCA, UN, UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNTAC, UPU, WADB, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Names
conventional long form: Republic of Senegal conventional short form: Senegal local long form: Republique du Senegal local short form: Senegal
National Assembly
last held 28 February 1988 (next to be held NA May 1993); results - PS 71%, PDS 25%, other 4%; seats - (120 total) PS 103, PDS 17
National holiday
Independence Day, 4 April (1960)
Other political or pressure groups
students; teachers; labor; Muslim Brotherhoods
Political parties and leaders
Socialist Party (PS), President Abdou DIOUF; Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS), Abdoulaye WADE; 13 other small uninfluential parties
President
last held 21 February 1993 (next to be held NA); results - Abdou DIOUF (PS) 58.4%, Abdoulaye WADE (PDS) 32.03%, other 9.57%
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Type
republic under multiparty democratic rule
US diplomatic representation
chief of mission: (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Robert J. KOTT embassy: Avenue Jean XXIII at the corner of Avenue Kleber, Dakar mailing address: B. P. 49, Dakar telephone: [221] 23-42-96 or 23-34-24
Economy
Agriculture
major products - peanuts (cash crop), millet, corn, sorghum, rice, cotton, tomatoes, green vegetables; estimated two-thirds self-sufficient in food; fish catch of 354,000 metric tons in 1990
Budget
revenues $921 million; expenditures $1,024 million; including capital expenditures of $14 million (FY89 est.)
Currency
1 CFA franc (CFAF) = 100 centimes
Economic aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $551 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $5.23 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $589 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $295 million
Electricity
215,000 kW capacity; 760 million kWh produced, 100 kWh per capita (1991)
Exchange rates
Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (CFAF) per US$1 - 274.06 (January 1993), 264.69 (1992), 282.11 (1991), 272.26 (1990), 319.01 (1989), 297.85 (1988)
Exports
$904 million (f.o.b., 1991 est.) commodities: manufactures 30%, fish products 23%, peanuts 12%, petroleum products 16%, phosphates 9% partners: France, other EC members, Mali, Cote d'Ivoire, India
External debt
$2.9 billion (1990)
Fiscal year
1 July - 30 June; in January 1993, Senegal will switch to a calendar year
Illicit drugs
increasingly active as a transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin moving to Europe and North America
Imports
$1.2 billion (c.i.f., 1991 est.) commodities: semimanufactures 30%, food 27%, durable consumer goods 17%, petroleum 12%, capital goods 14% partners: France, other EC, Cote d'Ivoire, Nigeria, Algeria, China, Japan
Industrial production
growth rate 4.7% (1989); accounts for 15% of GDP
Industries
agricultural and fish processing, phosphate mining, petroleum refining, building materials
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
2% (1990)
National product
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $5.4 billion (1991 est.)
National product per capita
$780 (1991 est.)
National product real growth rate
1.2% (1991 est.)
Overview
The agricultural sector accounts for about 12% of GDP and provides employment for about 80% of the labor force. About 40% of the total cultivated land is used to grow peanuts, an important export crop. Another principal economic resource is fishing, which brought in about 23% of total foreign exchange earnings in 1990. Mining is dominated by the extraction of phosphate, but production has faltered because of reduced worldwide demand for fertilizers in recent years. Over the past 10 years tourism has become increasingly important to the economy.
Unemployment rate
NA%
Communications
Airports
total: 25 usable: 19 with permanent-surface runways: 10 with runways over 3,659 m: with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 15
Highways
14,007 km total; 3,777 km paved, 10,230 km laterite or improved earth
Inland waterways
897 km total; 785 km on the Senegal, 112 km on the Saloum
Merchant marine
1 bulk ship (1,000 GRT and over) totaling 1,995 GRT/3,775 DWT
Ports
Dakar, Kaolack, Foundiougne, Ziguinchor
Railroads
1,034 km 1.000-meter gauge; all single track except 70 km double track Dakar to Thies
Telecommunications
above-average urban system, using microwave and cable; broadcast stations - 8 AM, no FM, 1 TV; 3 submarine cables; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station
Military and Security
Branches
Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie, National Police
Defense expenditures
exchange rate conversion - $100 million, 2% of GDP (1989 est.)
Manpower availability
males age 15-49 1,882,551; fit for military service 983,137; reach military age (18) annually 91,747 (1993 est.)