Total Area:196,190 sq km Land Borders: The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-
Population: 11,987,121 Bissau, Mali, Mauritania
Life Expectancy: 59 years HIV % Total Poulation:0.8
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%
Languages:French (official), Wolof, Pulaar, Jola, Mandinka
President:Abdoulaye WADE GDP - Per Capita: $1,800
Independent from France in 1960, Senegal was ruled by the Socialist Party for forty years until current President Abdoulaye WADE was elected in 2000. Senegal joined with The Gambia to form the nominal confederation of Senegambia in 1982, but the envisaged integration of the two countries was never carried out, and the union was dissolved in 1989. A southern separatist group sporadically has clashed with government forces since 1982, but Senegal remains one of the most stable democracies in Africa. Senegal has a long history of participating in international peacekeeping.