History:
In April 1959 Senegal and French Sudan (now Mali) formed the Mali Federation. But Senegal withdrew in 1960 and declared itself an independent republic with a parliamentary democracy. Léopold Senghor, an internationally renowned poet and statesman, was elected Senegal's first president in 1960. He was succeeded in 1981 by Abdou Diouf, who was reelected in 1983, 1988, and 1993. Senegal has fought separatist rebels in the southern province of Casamance since 1982. Senegal and Gambia shared joint defense and foreign and monetary policies but retained their individual sovereignty under the Confederation of Senegambia of 1982, which was dissolved in 1989.

Polulation:
Senegal has a population of over 11 million.

GDP (nominal)2001 Estimate:
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.


Currency: CFA franc (XOF)
Time zone : UTC
Internet TLD :.sn
Calling code:+221