Senegal is a country in the West that owns its name from the Sénégal River which boarders to the north and east. It also acts as one of the Senegal’s main attraction centers. The word Senegal basically means our Canoe or Pirogue which was as a misunderstanding and miscommunication between 15th century sailors from Portugal and the Wolof fishermen. Another theory that competes with the canoe one is that which claims that Senegal derives its name from a medieval town of Sanghana which holds other spellings like Isenghan, Singhana and Asengan. Senegal is externally bounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the west; Mali covers its boarder on the east, Mauritania is based on its northern border and Guinea-Bissau at its southern pole. Senegal internally surrounds Gambia almost completely on its north, south and east ruling out the famous Gambia short Atlantic coastline. Geographically, Senegal covers a land of almost 197,000 square kilometers. It also has a population ranging at 13 million citizens who rely on its two seasoned climate; the rainy and the dry season.
Senegal’s capital city, Dakar is located at the Western most tip of the country situated around Cap-Vert peninsula. Cape Verde Islands are located 500 kilometers equal to 300 miles off the coast. It was through this coast that a large number of trading posts belonging to different Europeans colonial empires were brought in and established. Water was the only efficient means of transport of which boosted the quick economic growth of the coast as the Europeans would camp there and others would take the advantages to situate their innovative businesses along the travel routes.
The ethnic history of Senegal
After the tenth century, the people of Senegal were always in constant contact with the people North Africa due to the Paleolithic and Neolithic tools, wall paintings and pottery that had been based in the Senegal River Valley. This river acted as one source that boosted the travellers and the residents with great sources of income like fishing and also as means of transportation through which the Berbers and caravans had linked with Senegal in a manner of often visiting in interval periods to trade as invaders who were searching for territories to raid, conquer and convert into Islamic grounds. As time went by, the Wolof Empire that extended to the Gambia River from River Senegal involved six major states: Cayor, Sine, Baol, Djolof,Walo and Saloum. In mid of 14th century the Portuguese converted Goree’s Island into a graveyard where sailors established a quite profitable trade for gold and slaves along the coast. Other European merchants started flowing into the island. They established their first settlements around 1638 at the Senegal River on the Saint-Louis that gradually became the base where all the French expansions activities were carried in West Africa.
It is in 1840 that the French government abruptly Senegal as one of French’s possessions. It was cleared of all forms of slavery that existed then and finally granted the slaves that were rescued and proved to be born in Senegal, a full citizenship. In effect to that step, the people of Senegal gained the ability to elect and send one deputy to the National Assembly in Paris. Due to the repetitiveness of battles between the kingdoms along the coast, General Louis Faidherbe, a colonial administrator was shouldered the mandate to pacify the matter. He created his own army of Corpse of Senegalese riflemen through individuals locally volunteering under the armed French soldiers who participated in achieving fame internationally during the World War 2. The French government had earlier opted on embarking on the grand design to conquer the hold captive as much land as possible. By 1902, it had covered the conquest of most of the parts of West Africa that were earlier not occupied by Britain, Portugal, the Germans and Dakar which was made the capital of all French west African conquered territories. Schools to provide education to the children of the African residents were based around the river and to add to that, they were issued with scholarships to create a stepping stone for them to attain higher education in France and creation of a trained, informed and educated African elite to facilitate the hastened growth of economy.
Politics in Senegal are usually carried out in a framework entailing a semi-presidential of the democratic republic. The president serves as the head of state and the prime minister of Senegal. The president holds the executive power in Senegal. The country has a detailed format of legislation where the legislative power is basically vested in the government and the parliament in general. It is normally rare for the parliament to introduce legislation or in other words vote down the legislation laid down by the government. Senegal’s judicially is theoretically set to be independent of the executive and the legislature. In spite of this power of the judiciary, the executive branch seems to exert undue control over the judiciary.
In the world history, Senegal has been one of the few African states that has never had a coup d’état experience. Senegal has maintained its peaceful nature and fluent flow of leadership and authority. The set rules and regulation in the country’s constitution has greatly impacted on the ways through which the elected leaders attend to their responsibilities. After independence, Leopold Senghor, the first president of Senegal resigned in favor of the prime minister as of that time, Abdou Diouf in the year 1981. All presidents that have served in the government of the republic of Senegal are selected under democratic elections that involve extremely fair and transparent elections. Senegal is known of its very intense, effective and impassive politics. Despite of these competitive challenges that the country faces, it holds a relatively awesome and serene competitive democratic elections history.
The president serves for a 5 year term after being elected by a universal suffrage of adults. The Cour Suprême which is equivalent to the United States Supreme Courts together with the Constitutional Council is the highest tribunals which are named by the president. Senegal is a country that is wholly made up of 11 administrative regions that are each headed the governors who are appointed by and are legally responsible to the President for any act they take. The decentralization law that was brought to effect in the year 1998, equipped significant central government authority to the major regional assemblies of the nation. These assemblies help in implementations of the governmental rules of law assented by the president to the general public who have to are be allowed freedom of speech to comment and discuss on how the laws affects their lives; whether it has a positive impact on their lives or are they just but an additional pull back to the country’s development.
Presently, Senegal has 72 political parties. Most of these are quit small and are extremely marginal for as compared to their leaders and their positions in the government. On the contrary, the principle political parties mainly constitute of a true multiparty, fully democratic cultures made up of major political features.
The existence of a free, fair and fully neutral media that is fully free from any official or informal drive or control has tremendously contributed to the peaceful and transparent democratic politics of Senegal. Despite of existence many developed countries; Senegal allows its media a wide range of freedom to exclusively criticize any form of unfair political moves and by actually motivating the media workers with promotion for any move made towards ensuring that a free and fair democratic election is carried. Strict laws are set against candidates who engage in unfair political competition like campaigning on the polls day, purchasing of votes and provision of hate speeches to the public. These measures include expulsion of the candidate or complete disqualification from the current polls.
Executively, the president is the one who appoints the prime minister that he feels is able, willing and has the potential to help in the states matter. In the year 2001, Senegal’s institution was altered bringing in change to the presidential service period the country to a two-term term limit. In contrast to this executive law, Abdoulaye Wade the president at that time claimed that the in the two terms he had served, the first term was under the old constitution and he thus claimed to be eligible to vie again for the seat.
Senegal’s legislative structure is a two multi-party republic comprising of two houses of legislature. The Senate and National Assembly also known as the Assemblée Nationale; consists of a total of 150 members who are elected for a full five-year term through a fair parallel voting system and inclusive of a multi-seating rather than a single-seat constituency. This gradually constitutes the plurality of the system. At the beginning of the year 2012, Senegal appointed a new president by the name Macky Sall who represented the Alliance for the Republic. He had previously served as the Prime Minister and also as the Speaker President Wade before he was ousted from the Democratic Party in the year 2007. The World Bank acknowledges presidents Macky’s government as one that includes prominent and honorable private sector members who include the prime minister and the Finance minister.
As a result of the conferences held in Mexico City in the year 1975and those that were held in Nairobi, Copenhagen, Vienna, Cairo and Beijing in the year 1995, the participation of women in Senegal and the other countries have tremendously increased. Women have become tremendously active in matters of state and active participation in public affairs. In Senegal, the women account to a percentage of more than 50% of the populations and on the other hand for more than 50% of the voters or in other words the electrolytes. In spite of these huge statistics, the Senegal’s constitution that was adopted in the year 2001 gives women a relative progress.
Senegal is among the top countries in Francophone Africa with the highest number of women representatives in the National Assembly with a rate of 19.2 percent from the year 2001 which has heightened to a 12 percentage in 1993 up to 1998’s statistics that left at 16% of women population in the Senegal parliament.
In reaction to this, women have developed strategies to help them in earning more spaces in the parliament. A workshop that was organized by the African Institute for Democracy under the topic, ‘Women in Democracy’ where a group of women that were used in participating in political parties, and trade unions came together to create a unified program that supports women leadership called the Senegalese Council of Women. Before and after democratization in Africa, African countries focused more on distribution of goods and services. Politicians laid their targets on the goods and services including health services to various specific groups mostly those related to the president’s ethnic group. Senegal was one of the victims of this since it seemed never realized the connection between it and health issues. The literature on the effects of democracy in improving the conditions of the ruled communities usually examines the role of democracy in providing social services to such communities. Absence of democracy in a country then means disparity in social service distribution. The commonly affected services include education, roads, health services and rural electrification. Therefore, democracy is related to health services and health care services and systems in a country.
The rampant poor health conditions that prevailed in Africa are a significant evidence of lack of effective democracy in African countries like Senegal, which the health systems are improving currently. The health conditions of Senegal are evident by the prevailing mortality rates, life expectancy, maternal mortality and infant mortality that is decreasing as matters of democracy are being advocated and supported by jurisdictions.
Senegalese politicians have in the recent past advocated for legal and democratic reforms aimed at improving the living conditions of the people of Senegal. The various reforms are expected to be factored into the various sectors of services delivery and economy. The most significant reforms involve frequency and improvement of Demographic Health Surveys. This has served to improve the health services of the country as it ensures that significant health concerns are prior and attention paid to them as per the requirements of the communities’ health problems and demand.
In relation to the problem of ethnicity and democratic problem in Senegal, the current government under his Excellency Macky Sall who is the commander in chief of the armed and defense forces has taken a great initiative in encouraging its creation of more education spaces for the girl child to get a good chance to know, interact freely with other children which will in return help them growth politically, socially and even economically.
Bibliography
American University (Washington, D.C.), and Thomas Duval Roberts. Area Handbook for Senagal. Washington: U.S. Govt. Print. Office, 1963.
Berman, Bruce, Dickson Eyoh, and Will Kymlicka. Ethnicity & Democracy in Africa. Oxford: J. Currey, 2004.
Dilley, Roy, and J. S. Eades. Senegal. Santa Barbara, CA: Clio Press, 2009.
Diouf, Mamadou. Tolerance, Democracy, and Sufis in Senegal. New York: Columbia University Press, 2013.
Kuenzi, Michelle T. Education and Democracy in Senegal. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011.
