ZCZC
BFF-19
SENEGAL-VOTE-FACTFILE-FACTS
Senegal: Model of African stability
DAKAR, Feb 22, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – The Muslim-majority nation of Senegal,
governed by President Macky Sall since 2012, is often held up as a model of
stability in West Africa.
Elections take place on Sunday in which Sall is seeking a new term.
Some background:
– Political stability –
Senegal gained independence from France in 1960. It is one of the rare
West African nations not to have suffered a coup, although one was allegedly
attempted in 1962 by then prime minister Mamadou Dia.
Poet Leopold Sedar Senghor was named first post-independence head of state
and in 1963 won its first presidential elections, when he was the only
candidate.
He held power for 20 years, retiring in 1980 to be replaced by his prime
minister, Abdou Diouf.
Diouf was defeated in 2000 by Abdoulaye Wade of the liberal Senegalese
Democratic Party (PDS), the first time in 40 years the Socialists had lost
power.
Wade lost the 2012 elections to Sall, his former prime minister.
These peaceful transitions of power have been hailed as a beacon for
Africa, although Senegalese elections themselves are often stained by
disinformation, accusations of corruption and violence.
– Religious tolerance –
Senegal is more than 90 percent Muslim, predominantly moderate Sufi
brotherhoods. It is known for its religious tolerance.
It has so far been spared the jihadist attacks that have destabilised
regional neighbours such as Mali.
In July 2018 it sent the alleged leader of a jihadist cell to prison for a
20-year term in its largest terror-related trial.
MORE/MR/ 1054 hrs
ZCZC
BFF-20
SENEGAL-VOTE-FACTFILE-FACTS-TWO-LAST
– Mainly agricultural –
Senegal’s economy depends largely on agriculture, especially peanut
production, millet, rice, sorghum and cotton. Exports include gold and
petroleum products.
Growth was 7.2 percent in 2017, surpassing six percent for the third year
in a row, according to the World Bank.
However basic services, health care and education are inadequate,
sometimes resulting in strikes and protests.
The poverty rate fell to 47 percent in 2011 from 55 percent 10 years
previously, according to the World Bank’s latest statistics.
Remittances from the large diaspora in Europe, notably France, Italy and
Spain, represent 10 percent of gross domestic product.
Sall has made infrastructure a priority, under his “Emerging Senegal” plan
which includes a new airport, motorway and a fast train line between Dakar
and a new town, Diamnadio.
– Conflict in Casamance –
Separatists in the southern region of Casamance, cut off from the rest of
the country by The Gambia, have been battling for independence more than 35
years.
The Casamance Movement of Democratic Forces (MFDC) campaign has left
thousands dead and forced many to flee their homes, although the violence has
calmed in recent years.
It has also hurt the economy of the region, heavily dependent on
agriculture and tourism.
– International fame –
Goree Island, four kilometres (2.5 miles) off the capital Dakar, was the
largest slave-trading centre on the African coast between the 15th and 19th
century, ruled by the Portuguese, Dutch, English and French.
Designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1978, it is visited every year
by thousands of tourists, especially African-Americans.
Many Senegalese singers are known around the world, such as Youssou
N’dour, the group Toure Kunda, Ismael Lo, Omar Pene and more recently the
American-Senegalese rapper Akon.
Another star is footballer Sadio Mane, who plays for Liverpool.
BSS/AFP/MR/ 1054 hrs