Senegal (2002) | Mauritania (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 10 regions (regions, singular - region); Dakar, Diourbel, Fatick, Kaolack, Kolda, Louga, Saint-Louis, Tambacounda, Thies, Ziguinchor
note: there may be another region called Matam |
12 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 capital district*; Adrar, Assaba, Brakna, Dakhlet Nouadhibou, Gorgol, Guidimaka, Hodh Ech Chargui, Hodh El Gharbi, Inchiri, Nouakchott*, Tagant, Tiris Zemmour, Trarza |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 43.5% (male 2,321,789; female 2,290,105)
15-64 years: 53.4% (male 2,710,178; female 2,943,554) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 159,445; female 164,500) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
46.14% (male 634,940; female 632,654) 15-64 years: 51.59% (male 698,433; female 718,883) 65 years and over: 2.27% (male 25,840; female 36,562) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | peanuts, millet, corn, sorghum, rice, cotton, tomatoes, green vegetables; cattle, poultry, pigs; fish | dates, millet, sorghum, rice, corn, dates; cattle, sheep |
Airports | 20 (2001) | 26 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 9
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
total:
8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 11
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
18 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 196,190 sq km
land: 192,000 sq km water: 4,190 sq km |
total:
1,030,700 sq km land: 1,030,400 sq km water: 300 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Dakota | slightly larger than three times the size of New Mexico |
Background | Independent from France in 1960, Senegal joined with The Gambia to form the nominal confederation of Senegambia in 1982. However, the envisaged integration of the two countries was never carried out, and the union was dissolved in 1989. Despite peace talks, a southern separatist group sporadically has clashed with government forces since 1982. Senegal has a long history of participating in international peacekeeping. | Independent from France in 1960, Mauritania annexed the southern third of the former Spanish Sahara (now Western Sahara) in 1976, but relinquished it after three years of raids by the Polisario guerrilla front seeking independence for the territory. Opposition parties were legalized and a new constitution approved in 1991. Two multiparty presidential elections since then were widely seen as being flawed; Mauritania remains, in reality, a one-party state. The country continues to experience ethnic tensions between its black minority population and the dominant Maur (Arab-Berber) populace. |
Birth rate | 36.99 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 42.95 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.373 billion
expenditures: $1.373 billion, including capital expenditures of $357 million (2002 est.) |
revenues:
$329 million expenditures: $265 million, including capital expenditures of $75 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | Dakar | Nouakchott |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; rainy season (May to November) has strong southeast winds; dry season (December to April) dominated by hot, dry, harmattan wind | desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty |
Coastline | 531 km | 754 km |
Constitution | a new constitution was adopted 7 January 2001 | 12 July 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Senegal
conventional short form: Senegal local long form: Republique du Senegal local short form: Senegal |
conventional long form:
Islamic Republic of Mauritania conventional short form: Mauritania local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Islamiyah al Muritaniyah local short form: Muritaniyah |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States | ouguiya (MRO) |
Death rate | 8.14 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 13.65 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.1 billion (2002 est.) | $2.1 billion (1999) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Harriet L. ELAM-THOMAS
embassy: Avenue Jean XXIII at the corner of Rue Kleber, Dakar mailing address: B. P. 49, Dakar telephone: [221] 823-4296 FAX: [221] 822-2991 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador John W. LIMBERT embassy: Rue Abdallaye, Nouakchott mailing address: B. P. 222, Nouakchott telephone: [222] 25-26-60, 25-26-63 FAX: [222] 25-15-92 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Amadou L. BA
chancery: 2112 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-0540 FAX: [1] (202) 332-6315 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Ahmed Ben Khalifa BEN JIDOU chancery: 2129 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2623 |
Disputes - international | Senegalese separatists disrupt legal border trade with smuggling, cattle rustling, and other illegal activities in Guinea-Bissau | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $362.6 million (2002 est.) | $300 million (1998) |
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 is 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 5% annually during 1995-2001. Annual inflation had been pushed down to less than 1%, but rose to an estimated 3.3% in 2001. Investment rose steadily from 13.8% of GDP in 1993 to 16.5% in 1997. As a member of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), Senegal is working toward greater regional integration with a unified external tariff. Senegal also realized full Internet connectivity in 1996, creating a miniboom in information technology-based services. Private activity now accounts for 82% of GDP. On the negative side, Senegal faces deep-seated urban problems of chronic unemployment, trade union militancy, juvenile delinquency, and drug addiction. | A majority of the population still depends on agriculture and livestock for a livelihood, even though most of the nomads and many subsistence farmers were forced into the cities by recurrent droughts in the 1970s and 1980s. Mauritania has extensive deposits of iron ore, which account for half of total exports. The decline in world demand for this ore, however, has led to cutbacks in production. The nation's coastal waters are among the richest fishing areas in the world, but overexploitation by foreigners threatens this key source of revenue. The country's first deepwater port opened near Nouakchott in 1986. In the past, drought and economic mismanagement have resulted in a buildup of foreign debt. In March 1999, the government signed an agreement with a joint World Bank-IMF mission on a $54 million enhanced structural adjustment facility (ESAF). Mauritania withdrew its membership in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in 2000. Privatization and debt relief are in full swing, and the rate of economic growth appears to be accelerating, especially in the construction, telecommunication, and information sectors. Diamonds and petroleum are beginning to be explored and exploited. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.228 billion kWh (2000) | 140.4 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 1.32 billion kWh (2000) | 151 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
82.78% hydro: 17.22% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed feature near Nepen Diakha 581 m |
lowest point:
Sebkha de Ndrhamcha -3 m highest point: Kediet Ijill 910 m |
Environment - current issues | wildlife populations threatened by poaching; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; overfishing | overgrazing, deforestation, and soil erosion aggravated by drought are contributing to desertification; very limited natural fresh water resources away from the Senegal which is the only perennial river |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, 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: Marine Dumping |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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% | mixed Maur/black 40%, Maur 30%, black 30% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro | ouguiyas per US dollar - 250.870 (December 2000), 238.923 (2000), 209.514 (1999), 188.476 (1998), 151.853 (1997), 137.222 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Abdoulaye WADE (since 1 April 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Idrissa SECK (since 4 November 2002) 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 under new constitution; election last held 27 February and 19 March 2000 (next to be held 27 February 2005); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Abdoulaye WADE elected president; percent of vote in the second round of voting - Abdoulaye WADE (PDS) 58.49%, Abdou DIOUF (PS) 41.51% |
chief of state:
President Col. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA (since 12 December 1984) head of government: Prime Minister Cheik El Avia Ould Mohamed KHOUNA (since 17 November 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 12 December 1997 (next to be held NA December 2003); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Col. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA reelected with 90.9% of the vote |
Exports | $1 billion f.o.b. (2001) | $333 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Exports - commodities | fish, groundnuts (peanuts), petroleum products, phosphates, cotton | iron ore, fish and fish products, gold |
Exports - partners | France 19%, Italy 12%, Spain 6%, Cote d'Ivoire 2% (2000) | Japan 18%, France 17%, Italy 16%, Spain 11% (1998) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | green with a yellow five-pointed star above a yellow, horizontal crescent; the closed side of the crescent is down; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $16.2 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5.4 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 19%
industry: 21% services: 61% (2000 est.) |
agriculture:
25% industry: 31% services: 44% (1997) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,580 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.7% (2001 est.) | 5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 00 N, 14 00 W | 20 00 N, 12 00 W |
Geography - note | westernmost country on the African continent; The Gambia is almost an enclave of Senegal | most of the population concentrated in the cities of Nouakchott and Nouadhibou and along the Senegal River in the southern part of the country |
Highways | total: 14,576 km
paved: 4,271 km unpaved: 10,305 km (1996) |
total:
7,660 km paved: 866 km unpaved: 6,794 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 43% (1991) |
lowest 10%:
2.3% highest 10%: 29.9% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin moving to Europe and North America; illicit cultivator of cannabis | - |
Imports | $1.3 billion f.o.b. (2001) | $305 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | foods and beverages, consumer goods, capital goods, petroleum products | machinery and equipment, petroleum products, capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | France 27%, Nigeria 19%, Germany 4%, US 4%, Italy 3% (2000) | France 27%, Benelux 9%, Germany 7%, Spain 7% (1998) |
Independence | 4 April 1960 (from France); complete independence was achieved upon dissolution of federation with Mali on 20 August 1960 | 28 November 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.2% (2000 est.) | 2.2% (1999) |
Industries | agricultural and fish processing, phosphate mining, fertilizer production, petroleum refining, construction materials | fish processing, mining of iron ore and gypsum |
Infant mortality rate | 55.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 76.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.3% (2001 est.) | 4.5% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ABEDA, ACCT (associate), ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CAEU, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2002) | 5 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 710 sq km (1998 est.) | 490 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Constitutional Court; Council of State; Court of Final Appeals or Cour de Cassation; Court of Appeals; note-the judicial system was reformed in 1992 | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Court of Appeals; lower courts |
Labor force | NA | 750,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 70% | agriculture 47%, services 39%, industry 14% |
Land boundaries | total: 2,640 km
border countries: The Gambia 740 km, Guinea 330 km, Guinea-Bissau 338 km, Mali 419 km, Mauritania 813 km |
total:
5,074 km border countries: Algeria 463 km, Mali 2,237 km, Senegal 813 km, Western Sahara 1,561 km |
Land use | arable land: 11.58%
permanent crops: 0.19% other: 88.23% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 38% forests and woodland: 4% other: 58% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Wolof, Pulaar, Jola, Mandinka | Hasaniya Arabic (official), Pular, Soninke, Wolof (official), French |
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; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | a combination of Shari'a (Islamic law) and French civil law |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (120 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve five-year terms)
note: the former National Assembly, dissolved in the spring of 2001, had 140 seats elections: last held 29 April 2001 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - SOPI Coalition 89, AFP 11, PS 10, other 10 |
bicameral legislature consists of the Senate or Majlis al-Shuyukh (56 seats; 17 up for election every two years; members elected by municipal leaders to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly or Majlis al-Watani (79 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 17 April 1998 (next to be held NA 2001); National Assembly - last held 11 and 18 October 1996 (next to be held NA 2001) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRDS 71, AC 1, independents and other 7 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 62.93 years
male: 61.29 years female: 64.61 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
51.14 years male: 49.06 years female: 53.29 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 39.1% male: 51.1% female: 28.9% (2001 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 46.7% male: 53.4% female: 40% (1998 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Senegal and Western Sahara |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Police (Surete Nationale) | Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Guard, National Police, Presidential Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $68.6 million (FY02) | $41 million (FY97/98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY02) | 2.7% (FY97/98) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,406,337 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
624,375 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,257,423 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
302,699 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 114,189 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 4 April (1960) | Independence Day, 28 November (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Senegalese (singular and plural)
adjective: Senegalese |
noun:
Mauritanian(s) adjective: Mauritanian |
Natural hazards | lowlands seasonally flooded; periodic droughts | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind blows primarily in March and April; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | fish, phosphates, iron ore | iron ore, gypsum, fish, copper, phosphate, diamonds, gold |
Net migration rate | 0.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | African Party for Democracy and Socialism or And Jef (also known as PADS/AJ) [Landing SAVANE, secretary general]; African Party of Independence [Majhemout DIOP]; 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 DIEYE]; Gainde Centrist Bloc or BGC [Jean-Paul DIAS]; Independence and Labor Party or PIT [Amath DANSOKHO]; National Democratic Rally or RND [Madier DIOUF]; Senegalese Democratic Party or PDS [Abdoulaye WADE]; Socialist Party or PS [Ousmane Tanor DIENG]; SOPI Coalition (a coalition led by the PDS) [Abdoulaye WADE]; Union for Democratic Renewal or URD [Djibo Leyti KA]; other small parties | Action for Change or AC [Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR]; Assembly for Democracy and Unity or RDU [Ahmed Ould SIDI BABA]; Democratic and Social Republican Party or PRDS (ruling party) [President Col. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA]; Mauritanian Party for Renewal and Concorde or PMRC [Molaye El Hassen Ould JIYID]; National Union for Democracy and Development or UNDD [Tidjane KOITA]; Party for Liberty, Equality and Justice or PLEJ [Daouda M'BAGNIGA]; Popular Front or FP [Ch'bih Ould CHEIKH MALAININE]; Popular Progress Alliance or APP [Mohamed El Hafed Ould ISMAEL]; Popular Social and Democratic Union or UPSD [Mohamed Mahmoud Ould MAH]; Progress Force Union or UFP [Mohamed Ould MOLOUD]; Union for Progress and Democracy or UNDD [Naha Mint MOUKNASS]
note: parties legalized by constitution ratified 12 July 1991; however, politics continue to be tribally based |
Political pressure groups and leaders | labor; Muslim brotherhoods; students; teachers | Arab nationalists; Ba'athists; General Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CGTM [Abdallahi Ould MOHAMED, secretary general]; Independent Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CLTM [Samory Ould BEYE]; Islamists; Mauritanian Workers Union or UTM [Mohamed Ely Ould BRAHIM, secretary general] |
Population | 10,589,571 (July 2002 est.) | 2,747,312 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 54% (2001 est.) | 50% (1996 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.91% (2002 est.) | 2.93% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Dakar, Kaolack, Matam, Podor, Richard Toll, Saint-Louis, Ziguinchor | Bogue, Kaedi, Nouadhibou, Nouakchott, Rosso |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 8, FM 20, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 1.24 million (1997) | 360,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 906 km
narrow gauge: 906 km 1.000-meter gauge (70 km double-tracked) (2001) |
total:
750 km (single track); note - owned and operated by government mining company standard gauge: 750 km 1.435-m gauge (1995) |
Religions | Muslim 94%, indigenous beliefs 1%, Christian 5% (mostly Roman Catholic) | Muslim 100% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: good system
domestic: above-average urban system; microwave radio relay, coaxial cable and fiber-optic cable in trunk system international: 4 submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment:
limited system of cable and open-wire lines, minor microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations (improvements being made) domestic: mostly cable and open-wire lines; a recently completed domestic satellite telecommunications system links Nouakchott with regional capitals international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 2 Arabsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 234,916 (2001) | 26,000 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 373,965 (2001) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | generally low, rolling, plains rising to foothills in southeast | mostly barren, flat plains of the Sahara; some central hills |
Total fertility rate | 5.03 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 6.22 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 48% (urban youth 40%) (2001 est.) | 23% (1995 est.) |
Waterways | 897 km
note: 785 km on the Senegal river, and 112 km on the Saloum river |
note:
ferry traffic on the Senegal River |