33 Countries of Origin’ Profiles

SENEGAL Produced by ANFE Italia (Associazione Nazionale Famiglie Emigranti) GEOGRAPHY: Senegal sits on the West Coast of Africa, bordered by the North Atlantic Ocean , Mauritania to the north, Mali to the east, Guinea to the southeast and to the southwest Guinea-Bissau . The state surrounds the Gambia’s Country. Senegal is defined by rivers. The Senegal River meanders across the northern border, a behemoth of running water that is dammed in two places along its course. The Casamance River runs along the south, and is only navigable for 80 miles of its impressive 200-mile length. The Faleme River defines the eastern border. CAPITAL: Dakar POPULATION: 14,668,522 million LANGUAGE: . The number of individual languages listed for Senegal is 38 but the official language is French. In the northern part , between Mauritania and The Gambia, three main languages are spoken: Wolof especially in urban areas , Pulaar, and Sereer. The southern linguistic zone, located south of The Gambia, has a larger number of languages. Jola, Malinka, Pulaar, Sereer, Soninke, and Wolof ere recognised as national languages 1 . LITERACY RATE: 57.7%; male: 69.7% and female’s population 46.6% 2 BELIEF: The constitution provides for the freedom of religion and defines the country as a secular state. Senegal is predominately Muslim 95.4%, most adhere to one of the four main Sufi brotherhoods. The Senegalese Sufi Muslim traditions provides a model of religious coexistence and tolerance, so Christians (around 4%) and other religious minorities are generally well respected. 1 http://www.languageeducationpolicy.org/lepbyworldregion/africasenegal.html 2 https ://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sg.html