Senegal (2001) | Jamaica (2002) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 10 regions (regions, singular - region); Dakar, Diourbel, Fatick, Kaolack, Kolda, Louga, Saint-Louis, Tambacounda, Thies, Ziguinchor | 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
44.07% (male 2,279,996; female 2,252,255) 15-64 years: 52.88% (male 2,603,829; female 2,834,328) 65 years and over: 3.05% (male 155,877; female 158,644) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 29.1% (male 399,249; female 380,864)
15-64 years: 64.1% (male 858,433; female 859,174) 65 years and over: 6.8% (male 81,321; female 100,988) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | peanuts, millet, corn, sorghum, rice, cotton, tomatoes, green vegetables; cattle, poultry, pigs; fish | sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, potatoes, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk |
Airports | 20 (2000 est.) | 35 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
10 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 24
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 22 (2002) |
Area | total:
196,190 sq km land: 192,000 sq km water: 4,190 sq km |
total: 10,991 sq km
land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Dakota | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
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. | Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a dropoff in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Subsequent governments have been open market oriented. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s. |
Birth rate | 37.46 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 17.74 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$885 million expenditures: $885 million, including capital expenditures of $125 million (1996 est.) |
revenues: $2.23 billion
expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of $232.5 million |
Capital | Dakar | Kingston |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; rainy season (May to November) has strong southeast winds; dry season (December to April) dominated by hot, dry, harmattan wind | tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior |
Coastline | 531 km | 1,022 km |
Constitution | 3 March 1963, revised 1991 | 6 August 1962 |
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: none
conventional short form: Jamaica |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States | Jamaican dollar (JMD) |
Death rate | 8.35 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.45 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.1 billion (1998 est.) | $5.2 billion (2001 est.) |
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, 823-7384 FAX: [221] 822-2991 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Sue McCourt COBB
embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859 FAX: [1] (876) 926-6743 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Mamadou Mansour SECK chancery: 2112 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-0540 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Seymour MULLINGS
chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $647.5 million (1995) | $102.7 million (1995) (1995) |
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 in 1995-99. Annual inflation has been pushed down to 2%, and the fiscal deficit has been cut to less than 1.5% of GDP. 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 (UEMOA), 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, juvenile delinquency, and drug addiction. Real GDP growth is expected to rise above 6%, while inflation is likely to hold at 2% in 2001-02. | The economy, which depends heavily on tourism and bauxite, has been stagnant since 1995. After five years of recession, the economy grew 0.8% in 2000 and 1.1% in 2001, but the global economic slowdown, particularly in the United States after the 11 September terrorist attacks, has stunted the economic recovery. Serious problems include: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a widening merchandise trade deficit; and a growing internal debt, the result of government bailouts to various ailing sectors of the economy, particularly the financial sector. Depressed economic conditions have led to increased civil unrest, including a mounting crime rate. Jamaica's medium-term prospects will depend upon encouraging investment, maintaining a competitive exchange rate, selling off reacquired firms, and implementing proper fiscal and monetary policies. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.181 billion kWh (1999) | 6.27 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 1.27 billion kWh (1999) | 6.74 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 89%
hydro: 3% nuclear: 0% other: 7% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed feature near Nepen Diakha 581 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m |
Environment - current issues | wildlife populations threatened by poaching; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; overfishing | heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, 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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, 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% | black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997), 511.55 (1966); note - from 1 January 1999, the XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro | Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 47.277 (December 2001), 45.996 (2001), 42.701 (2000), 39.044 (1999), 36.550 (1998), 35.404 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Abdoulaye WADE (since 1 April 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Madior BOYE (since 3 March 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 27 February and 19 March 2000 (next to be held 27 February 2007); 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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991)
head of government: Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) and Deputy Prime Minister Seymour MULLINGS (since NA 1993) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister |
Exports | $959 million (f.o.b., 2000) | $1.6 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | fish, ground nuts (peanuts), petroleum products, phosphates, cotton | alumina, bauxite; sugar, bananas, rum |
Exports - partners | France 17%, India 17%, Italy 12%, Spain 6%, Mali 6%, Cote d'Ivoire 4% (1999) | US 35.7%, EU (excluding UK) 15.9%, UK 13%, Canada 10.5% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
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 | diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $16 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9.8 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
19% industry: 20% services: 61% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 7%
industry: 28% services: 65% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,600 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.7% (2000 est.) | 1.1% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 00 N, 14 00 W | 18 15 N, 77 30 W |
Geography - note | The Gambia is almost an enclave of Senegal | strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal |
Highways | total:
14,576 km paved: 4,271 km unpaved: 10,305 km (1996) |
total: 19,000 km
paved: 13,433 km unpaved: 5,567 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
1.4% highest 10%: 42.8% (1991) |
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 29% (1996) (1996) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin moving to Europe and North America; illicit cultivator of cannabis | major transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions |
Imports | $1.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $3.1 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foods and beverages, consumer goods, capital goods, petroleum products | machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, fuel, food, chemicals, fertilizers |
Imports - partners | France 30%, Nigeria 7%, Italy 6%, Thailand 5%, Germany 4%, US 4% (1999) | US 47.8%, Caricom countries 12.4%, Latin America 7.2%, EU (excluding UK) 4.7% (1999) |
Independence | 4 April 1960 (from France); complete independence was achieved upon dissolution of federation with Mali on 20 August 1960 | 6 August 1962 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7% (1998 est.) | -2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | agricultural and fish processing, phosphate mining, fertilizer production, petroleum refining, construction materials | tourism, bauxite, textiles, food processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products |
Infant mortality rate | 56.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 13.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.5% (2000 est.) | 6.9% (2001 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, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MINURSO, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNTAET, UPU, WADB, WAEMU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 21 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 710 sq km (1993 est.) | 250 sq km (1998 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 (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal |
Labor force | NA | 1.13 million (1998) (1998) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 60% | services 60%, agriculture 21%, industry 19% (1998) (1998) |
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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
12% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 16% forests and woodland: 54% other: 18% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 16.07%
permanent crops: 9.23% other: 74.7% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Wolof, Pulaar, Jola, Mandinka | English, patois English |
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 | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 16 October 2002 (next to be held NA October 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PNP 52%, JLP 47.3%; seats by party - PNP 34, JLP 26 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
62.56 years male: 60.94 years female: 64.22 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 75.64 years
male: 73.65 years female: 77.73 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 33.1% male: 43% female: 23.2% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 85% male: 80.8% female: 89.1% (1995 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
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 |
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 21,954 GRT/25,250 DWT
ships by type: petroleum tanker 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Latvia 2, United States 2 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Police (Surete Nationale) | Jamaica Defense Force (including Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air Wing), Jamaica Constabulary Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $68 million (FY97) | $30 million (FY95/96 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY97) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,311,063 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 747,043 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,207,360 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 523,550 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
114,189 (2001 est.) |
males: 27,729 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 4 April (1960) | Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962) |
Nationality | noun:
Senegalese (singular and plural) adjective: Senegalese |
noun: Jamaican(s)
adjective: Jamaican |
Natural hazards | lowlands seasonally flooded; periodic droughts | hurricanes (especially July to November) |
Natural resources | fish, phosphates, iron ore | bauxite, gypsum, limestone |
Net migration rate | 0.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -6.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | petroleum products 10 km |
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]; Senegalese Democratic Party-Renewal or PDS-R [Serigne Lamine DIOP, secretary general]; Senegalese Democratic Union-Renewal or UDS-R [Mamadou Puritain FALL]; Socialist Party or PS [President Abdou DIOUF]; SOPI Coalition (a 40-party coalition led by the PDS) [Abdoulaye WADE]; Union for Democratic Renewal or URD [Djibo Leyti KA]; other small parties | Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | labor; Muslim brotherhoods; students; teachers | New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) |
Population | 10,284,929 (July 2001 est.) | 2,680,029 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 34% (1992 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.93% (2001 est.) | 0.56% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Dakar, Kaolack, Matam, Podor, Richard Toll, Saint-Louis, Ziguinchor | Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 10, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 1.24 million (1997) | 1.215 million (1997) |
Railways | total:
906 km narrow gauge: 906 km 1.000-meter gauge (70 km double track) |
total: 272 km
standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-m gauge; note - 207 km, belonging to the Jamaica Railway Corporation, were in common carrier service but are no longer operational; the remaining track is privately owned and used to transport bauxite (2000) |
Religions | Muslim 92%, indigenous beliefs 6%, Christian 2% (mostly Roman Catholic) | Protestant 61.3% (Church of God 21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%, United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian 1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other, including some spiritual cults 34.7% |
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: 0.98 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2002 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: fully automatic domestic telephone network
domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables |
Telephones - main lines in use | 116,000 (1997) | 353,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,149 (1996) | 54,640 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 7 (1997) |
Terrain | generally low, rolling, plains rising to foothills in southeast | mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain |
Total fertility rate | 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.05 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA%; urban youth 40% | 16% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 897 km
note: 785 km on the Senegal river, and 112 km on the Saloum river |
none |