Economy ofSenegal

Dakar, Senegal'splace de l'Indépendance: a center of government, banking and trade. In the background is the commercial port and the tourist area,Gorée island.
Trade organisations	AU,AfCFTA,ECOWAS,CEN-SAD,WTO
Country group	Least developed[1] Lower-middle income economy[2]
Statistics
Population	18,384,660 (2023)[3]
GDP	$34.73 billion (nominal;2025)[4] $105.43 billion (PPP;2025)[4]
GDP rank	106th (nominal; 2025) 101th (PPP; 2025)
GDP growth	4.3% (2023)[4] 6.7% (2024)[4] 8.4% (2025)[4] 4.1% (2026f)[4]
GDP per capita	$1,810 (nominal;2025)[4] $5,500 (PPP;2025)[4]
GDP per capita rank	154th (nominal; 2025) 150th (PPP; 2025)
GDP by sector	agriculture: 16.9% industry: 24.3% services: 58.8% (2017 est.)[5]
Inflation (CPI)	2.2% (2021)[6]
Population belowpoverty line	46.7% (2011 est.)[5] 67.5% on less than $3.20/day (2011)[7]
Gini coefficient	38.1medium (2018,World Bank)[8]
Human Development Index	0.517low (2022)[9] (169th) 0.334lowIHDI (2022)[10]
Labour force	5,257,332 (2023)[11] 42.4% employment rate (2015)[12]
Labour force by occupation	agriculture: 77.5% industry: 22.5% industry and services: 22.5% (2007 est.)[5]
Unemployment	15,7% (2017)[13]
Main industries	agricultural and fish processing, phosphate mining, fertilizer production, petroleum refining, zircon, and gold mining, construction materials, ship construction and repair
External
Exports	$2.362 billion (2017 est.)[5]
Export goods	fish, groundnuts (peanuts), petroleum products, phosphates, cotton
Main export partners	Mali 20%  Switzerland 14.5% India 10.1% China 6.68% Australia 4.18% Cote d'Ivoire 4.13% Spain 3.73% Gambia 3.38% Guinea 2.76% United States 2.57% (2017)[5]
Imports	$5.217 billion (2017 est.)[5]
Import goods	food and beverages, capital goods, fuels
Main import partners	China 21.1% Russia 9.15% France 7.62% India 6.33% Netherlands 4.96% Belgium 4.52% United States 3.9% Turkey 3.86% Nigeria 3.3% Spain 2.85% (2017)[5]
Current account	−$1.547 billion (2017 est.)[5]
Grossexternal debt	$8.571 billion (31 December 2017 est.)[5]
Public finances
Government debt	48.3% of GDP (2017 est.)[5]
Foreign reserves	$1.827 billion (31 December 2017 est.)[5]
Budget balance	−3.6% (of GDP) (2017 est.)[5]
Revenues	4.139 billion (2017 est.)[5]
Expenses	4.9 billion (2017 est.)[5]
All values, unless otherwise stated, are inUS dollars.

Theeconomy of Senegal is driven by mining, construction, tourism, fishing and agriculture, which are the main sources of employment in rural areas. Natural resources include iron, zircon, gold, phosphates, and now oil and gas. In the past Senegal's economy gained most of its foreign exchange fromfish,phosphates,groundnuts,tourism. One of the historically dominant parts of the economy,agricultural, is highly vulnerable to environmental conditions such as variations in rainfall and climate, and fluctuations in worldcommodity prices. It is a member of theWorld Trade Organization.

The Capital of Senegal,Dakar, was the former capital of all ofFrench West Africa. As a result, it remains the home to major banks and other institutions which serve all of Francophonic West Africa, and is the hub for shipping and transport into and out of the entire region.

Senegal has one of the most developed tourist industries in Africa.

The main obstacles to the economic development of the country are its greatcorruption with inefficient justice, very slow administrative formalities, and a failing education sector.^[14]

TheGDP per capita^[15] of Senegal shrank by 1.30% in the 1960s. However, it registered a peak growth of 158% in the 1970s, and still expanded 43% in the turbulent 1980s. However, this proved unsustainable and the economy consequently shrank by 40% in the 1990s.

Since the January 1994 CFA franc devaluation, theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF), theWorld Bank, and other multilateral and creditors have been supporting the Government of Senegal's structural and sectoral adjustment programs. The broad objectives of the program have been to facilitate growth and development by reducing the role of government in the economy, improving public sector management, enhancing incentives for the private sector, and reducing poverty.

In January 1994,Senegal undertook a radical economic reform program at the behest of the international donor community. This reform began with a 50% devaluation of Senegal's currency, the CFA franc, which was linked at a fixed rate to theFrench franc. Government price controls and subsidies have been steadily dismantled as another economic reform.

This currency devaluation had severe social consequences, because most essential goods were imported. Overnight, the price of goods such as milk, rice, fertilizer and machinery doubled. As a result, Senegal suffered a large exodus, with many of the most educated people and those who could afford it choosing to leave the country.

After an economic contraction of 2.1% in 1993, Senegal made an important turnaround, thanks to the reform program, with a growth inGDP averaging over 5% annually during 1995–2004. Annualinflation had been pushed down to the low single digits.

As a member of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), Senegal is working toward greater regional integration with a unified external tariff and a more stable monetary policy. Senegal still relies heavily upon outside donor assistance, however. Under the IMF'sHighly Indebted Poor Countries debt relief program, Senegal will benefit from eradication of two-thirds of its bilateral, multilateral, and private sector debt, contingent on the completion of privatization program proposed by the government and approved by the IMF.

Two thirds of Senegalese expect living conditions to improve in the coming decades.^[16]

Thefishing sector has replaced thegroundnut sector as Senegal's export leader. Its export earnings reached U.S.$239 million in 2000. The industrial fishing operations struggle with high costs, and Senegalesetuna is rapidly losing the French market to more efficient Asian competitors.

Phosphate production, the second major foreign exchange earner, has been steady at about U.S.$95 million. Exports of peanut products reached U.S.$79 million in 2000 and represented 11% of total export earnings. Receipts from tourism, the fourth major foreign exchange earner, have picked up since the January 1994 devaluation. In 2000, some 500,000 tourists visited Senegal, earning the country $120 million.

Senegal's newAgency for the Promotion of Investment (APIX) plays a pivotal role in the government's foreign investment program. Its objective is to increase the investment rate from its current level of 20.6% to 30%. Currently, there are no restrictions on the transfer or repatriation of capital and income earned, or investment financed with convertible foreign exchange. Direct U.S. investment in Senegal remains about U.S.$38 million, mainly in petroleum marketing, pharmaceuticals manufacturing, chemicals, and banking. Economic assistance, about U.S.$350 million a year, comes largely fromFrance, the IMF, the World Bank, and theUnited States.Canada,Italy,Japan, andGermany also provide assistance.

Senegal has well-developed though costly port facilities, a major international airport serving 23 international airlines, and direct and expandingtelecommunications links with major world centers.

With an external debt of U.S.$2,495 million,^[17] and with its economic reform program on track, Senegal qualified for the multilateraldebt relief initiative forHeavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC). Progress on structural reforms is on track, but the pace of reforms remains slow, as delays occur in implementing a number of measures on the privatization program,good governance issues, and the promotion of private sector activity.

Macroeconomic indicators show that Senegal turned in a respectable performance in meeting IMF targets in 2000: annual GDP growth increased to 5.7%, compared to 5.1% in 1999. Inflation was reported to be 0.7% compared to 0.8% in 1999, and the current account deficit (excluding transfers) was held at less than 6% of GDP.

In 2025, a report from the British bank Barclays reassesses the country's public debt at 119% of GDP for 2024. A figure calculated from the multi-year budgetary and economic programming document of the Ministry of the Economy of June 2025, which makes Senegal the most indebted country in Africa.^[18]

Senegalese trade unions include TheNational Confederation of Senegalese Workers (CNTS) and its affiliate theDakar Dem Dikk Workers Democratic Union (Dakar Public Transport workers), TheDemocratic Union of Senegalese Workers (UTDS), The General Confederation Of Democratic Workers Of Senegal (CGTDS) and theNational Union of Autonomous Trade Unions of Senegal (UNSAS). Mean wages were $0.99 perman-hour in 2009.

Senegal's corporations are included in theBourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières SA (BRVM), a regionalstock exchange serving the following eight West African countries, and located inAbidjan, Cote d'Ivoire.

In recent years, many construction sites have been halted by the Senegalese government for inspections. Investments account for 4% of GDP and employ nearly 200,000 people.^[19]

• Organization of African Unity (OAU)/Africa Union
• TheFranc Zone
• TheLomé Convention
• Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)
• Union économique et monétaire Ouest Africaine (UEMOA)
• TheAfrican Groundnut Council
• theOrganisation pour la mise en valeur du fleuve Sénégal

^[20]

GDP (purchasing power parity)

U.S.$43.24 billion (2017 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate)

U.S.$16.46 billion (2017 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

7.2% (2017 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP)

$2,700 (2017 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 16.9% industry: 24.3% services: 58.8% (2017 est.)

Population below poverty line

46.7% (2011 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 2.5% highest 10%: 31.1% (2011)

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

1.4% (2017 est.)

Investment (gross fixed)

41% of GDP (2006 est.)

Labor force

6.966 million (2017 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture: 77.5% industry and services: 22.5% (2007 est.)

Unemployment rate

48%; note - urban youth 40% (2001 est.)

Distribution of family income -Gini index

40.3 (2011)

Budget

revenues

U.S.$3.863 billion

expenditures

U.S.$4.474 billion (2017 est.)

Public debt

61.2% of GDP (2017 est.)

Industries

agricultural and fish processing, phosphate mining, fertilizer production, petroleum refining, construction materials, ship construction and repair

Industrial production growth rate

8.4% (2017 est.)

Electricity - production

3.673 billion kWh (2015 est.)

Electricity - consumption

3.014 billion kWh (2015 est.)

Electricity - exports

0 kWh (2016)

Electricity - imports

0 kWh (2016)

Oil - production

0 bbl/d (0 m³/d) (2004 est.)

Oil - consumption

35,000 bbl/d (5,600 m³/d) (2007 est.)

Natural gas - production

62 million cu m (2015 est.)

Natural gas - consumption

60 million cu m (2015 est.)

Natural gas - exports

0 cu m (2013 est.)

Natural gas - imports

0 cu m (2013 est.)

Current Account Balance

U.S.-$1.547 billion (2017 est.)

Agriculture - products

peanuts, millet, maize, sorghum, rice, cotton, tomatoes, green vegetables; cattle, poultry, pigs; fish

Exports

U.S.$2.546 billion (2017 est.)

Exports - commodities

fish, groundnuts (peanuts), petroleum products, phosphates, cotton

Exports - partners

Mali 14.8%, Switzerland 11.4%, India 6%, Cote dIvoire 5.3%, UAE 5.1%, Gambia, The 4.2%, Spain 4.1% (2017)

Imports

U.S.$5.227 billion (2017 est.)

Imports - commodities

food and beverages, capital goods, fuels

Imports - partners

France 16.3%, China 10.4%, Nigeria 8%, India 7.2%, Netherlands 4.8%, Spain 4.2% (2017)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

U.S.$151.8 million (31 December 2017 est.)

Debt - external

U.S.$6.745 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

Economic aid - recipient

U.S.$449.6 million (2003 est.)

Currency (code)

Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is theCentral Bank of West African States

Exchange rates

Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 617.4 (2017), 593.01 (2016), 593.01 (2015), 591.45 (2014), 494.42 (2013) 522.89 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002).In 2006, 1 € = 655.82 XOF (West-African CFA), or 1 XOF = 0.001525 € /€ to XOF /XOF to €

Fiscal year

calendar year

This is a chart of trend of gross domestic product of Senegal at market pricesestimated by theInternational Monetary Fund with figures in millions of CFA Francs.

Average wages in 2007 hover around $4–5 per day.

The following table shows the main economic indicators in 1980–2021. Inflation below 5% is in green^[21]

Year	GDP (in Bil. US$PPP)	GDP per capita (in US$ PPP)	GDP (in bil. US$ nominal)	GDP growth (real)	Inflation rate (in Percent)	Government debt (in % of GDP)
1980	6.0	1,069	4.3	-0.8%	8.8%	n/a
1981	6.9	1,197	3.9	5.1%	5.8%	n/a
1982	8.0	1,333	3.9	7.8%	17.4%	n/a
1983	7.8	1,274	3.4	-5.3%	11.7%	n/a
1984	8.4	1,330	3.4	3.7%	11.7%	n/a
1985	9.0	1,376	3.7	3.3%	13.0%	n/a
1986	9.4	1,404	5.2	3.1%	6.1%	n/a
1987	10.2	1,481	6.2	6.1%	-4.1%	n/a
1988	10.5	1,479	6.2	-0.6%	-1.8%	n/a
1989	11.4	1,551	6.1	4.0%	0.4%	n/a
1990	11.7	1,553	7.1	-0.7%	0.3%	n/a
1991	12.4	1,601	7.0	2.6%	-1.8%	n/a
1992	12.9	1,613	7.4	1.2%	0.0%	n/a
1993	13.4	1,625	7.0	1.3%	-0.7%	n/a
1994	13.6	1,610	4.7	-0.2%	32.1%	n/a
1995	14.8	1,698	6.0	6.1%	8.1%	n/a
1996	15.3	1,717	6.3	1.9%	2.8%	71.0%
1997	16.0	1,751	5.9	2.7%	1.8%	67.8%
1998	17.1	1,833	6.4	6.0%	1.0%	18.8%
1999	18.4	1,925	6.6	6.0%	0.8%	15.0%
2000	19.6	1,997	6.0	3.9%	0.8%	57.5%
2001	20.9	2,080	6.5	4.3%	3.1%	53.2%
2002	21.2	2,063	7.0	0.1%	2.4%	52.0%
2003	22.8	2,167	8.8	5.6%	0.0%	42.9%
2004	24.5	2,270	10.1	4.6%	0.5%	38.0%
2005	26.4	2,381	11.0	4.3%	1.7%	36.1%
2006	27.9	2,447	11.7	2.3%	2.1%	17.5%
2007	29.4	2,517	14.0	2.8%	5.9%	19.0%
2008	31.1	2,590	16.9	3.7%	6.3%	19.1%
2009	32.1	2,606	16.1	2.8%	-2.2%	29.9%
2010	33.6	2,653	16.1	3.4%	1.2%	34.6%
2011	34.8	2,670	17.8	1.3%	3.4%	32.9%
2012	36.7	2,739	17.7	4.0%	1.4%	34.5%
2013	37.8	2,742	18.9	2.4%	0.7%	36.9%
2014	40.1	2,831	19.8	6.2%	-1.1%	42.4%
2015	43.3	2,971	17.8	6.4%	0.9%	44.5%
2016	46.1	3,076	19.0	6.4%	1.2%	47.5%
2017	49.4	3,204	21.0	7.4%	1.1%	61.1%
2018	53.7	3,389	23.1	6.2%	0.5%	61.5%
2019	57.2	3,510	23.4	4.6%	1.0%	63.6%
2020	58.7	3,504	24.5	1.3%	2.5%	69.2%
2021	64.8	3,767	27.6	6.1%	2.2%	73.2%

• Senegal
• Tourism in Senegal
• Agriculture in Senegal
• Communications in Senegal
• Transport in Senegal
• Economy of Africa
• CFA franc
• United Nations Economic Commission for Africa

• (in French)Official Website: Republique du Senegal: MINISTÈRE DE L'ECONOMIE ET DES FINANCESArchived 2021-09-07 at theWayback Machine.
• (in French)Annuaire des services administratifs, Republique du Senegal: MINISTÈRE DE L'ECONOMIE ET DES FINANCES.
• SENEGAL: CHINESE GOODS STIMULATE INFORMAL TRADING ECONOMY. Interpress Service, Publication Date: 28-AUG-07.
• Senegal.The World Factbook.Central Intelligence Agency.
• François Boye.A Retrospective Analysis of the Senegalese Economy, December 1990: Conference paper from School of Business, Montclair State University.
• Senegal latest trade data on ITC Trade Map
• The SenegaleseCountry Commercial Guide, published by theUnited States government to aid the export of US products to foreign markets, can be found at:Senegalese Country Commercial Guides.
• Wages of Senegalese workers
• Institute for Security StudiesSenegal Economic Summary, 2001.
• Senegal Commerce Business and Trading: Republic of Senegal. (/)
• Senegal: Economy.Archived 2008-02-16 at theWayback Machine Aggregated press articles at OneWorldAfrica
• African Studies, Columbia University:Senegal, Banking and investment information.
• West African Agricultural Market Observer/Observatoire du Marché Agricole (RESIMAO), a project of the West-African Market Information Network (WAMIS-NET), provides live market and commodity prices from fifty seven regional and local public agricultural markets across Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Niger, Mali, Senegal, Togo, and Nigeria. Sixty commodities are tracked weekly. The project is run by the Benin Ministry of Agriculture, and a number of European, African, and United Nations agencies.
• World Bank Summary Trade Statistics Senegal

• Amadou Sakho.Senegal's slide from "model economy" to "least developed country". Misanet.com / IPS (2001).
• Birahim Bouna Niang.A diagnosis of Senegal's public external debt, Provisional report. Republic of Senegal Ministry of Economy and Finance, Political Economy Unit (UPE). January 2003.
• Pamela Cox. The Political Economy of Underdevelopment: Dependence in Senegal. African Affairs, Volume 79, Number 317. pp. 603–605
• Maghan Keita. The Political Economy of Health Care in Senegal, Journal of Asian and African Studies, Vol. 31, No. 3-4, 145-161 (1996)
• John Waterbury and Mark Gersovitz, eds., The political economy of risk and choice in Senegal. Frank Cass & Co. Ltd, London, (1987)ISBN 0-7146-3297-X
• Christopher L. Delgado, Sidi Jammeh. The Political Economy of Senegal Under Structural Adjustment. School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University (1991).ISBN 0-275-93525-6
• Cathy L. Jabara, Robert L. Thompson. Agricultural Comparative Advantage under International Price Uncertainty: The Case of Senegal.American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Vol. 62, No. 2 (May, 1980), pp. 188–198
• Peter Mark. Urban Migration, Cash Cropping, and Calamity: The Spread of Islam among the Diola of Boulouf (Senegal), 1900–1940. African Studies Review, Vol. 21, No. 2 (Sep., 1978), pp. 1–14
• Monique Lakroum. Le Travail Inegal: Paysans et Salaries Senegalais Face à la Crise des Annees Trente. Paris (1982).
• Ibrahima Thioub, Momar-Coumba Diop, Catherine Boone. Economic Liberalization in Senegal: Shifting Politics of Indigenous Business Interests. African Studies Review, Vol. 41, No. 2 (Sep., 1998), pp. 63–89
• Catherine Boone. Merchant Capital and the Roots of State Power in Senegal, 1930–1985, McGill, (1995).
• (in French) Jean Copans, Philippe Couty, Jean Roch, G. Rocheteau. Maintenance sociale et changement economique au Senegal I: Doctrine economique et pratique du travail chez les Mourides. Paris (1974).

• Economy of Senegal
• World Trade Organization member economies
• African Union member economies

• Webarchive template wayback links
• Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the World Factbook
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Articles with French-language sources (fr)