Senegal profile

Demography and Health

Senegal today is a young, rapidly growing country with a population of about 18.5 million people as of 2024, placing it around the 68th largest national population globally. The demographic profile is characterized by a relatively high birth rate (29.4 per 1,000 people in 2023), which supports a young age structure and potential for a large future labor force, but also imposes significant demand on education, health, and job creation. The crude death rate remains modest at about 5.6 per 1,000, while life expectancy at birth is 68.7 years (2023), signaling ongoing improvements in health outcomes but also highlighting gaps relative to higher-income peers. Under-5 mortality is still a substantial challenge at 38.5 deaths per 1,000 live births, underscoring persisting child health needs, disease burden, and access to quality maternal and child health services. Net migration is negative in 2024, with about 10,307 more people leaving than arriving, which can influence skills, remittances, and the pace of urbanization. The country’s Internet penetration is growing (60.6% of the population with Internet access in 2023), suggesting rising information access that can support health education, e-services, and economic participation, though it also reflects digital divides between urban and rural areas. Physiological health indicators show limited physician density (0.126 physicians per 1,000 people in 2022) and health spending modest in share of GDP (current health expenditure around 4.06% in 2022; domestically funded health expenditure per capita at PPP about 37 international dollars in 2022), pointing to constraints in access, preventive care, and workforce capacity despite progress. The nutrition landscape is mixed, with a prevalence of undernourishment at 4.6% in 2022, indicating persistent vulnerabilities in food security for a portion of the population. Overall, Senegal’s demography offers a window of opportunity for a demographic dividend, but realizing it requires targeted investments in health, nutrition, education, and job creation to translate a young population into a productive future.

Economy

Senegal presents a low-to-middle-income economy profile with a 2024 GDP per capita of about $1,744 (current US$) and a GDP per capita (PPP) of roughly $5,110, reflecting a modest income level but one that benefits from growth of services, agro-industry, and expanding manufacturing. The country’s external sector shows a relatively open trade posture: exports of goods and services amount to about 28.1% of GDP in 2024, while imports weigh in at about 43.1% of GDP, signaling a noteworthy trade deficit driven by intermediate imports and consumer goods. Inflation remains low to moderate (0.805% in 2024), which supports price stability for households and businesses though it also raises questions about domestic demand dynamics and capacity utilization in various sectors. The economy benefits from foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows totaling around 15.6% of GDP in 2023, indicating a strong investor interest that could bolster manufacturing, services, and infrastructure, while the current account deficit of 19.8% of GDP in 2023 underscores financing needs and sensitivity to commodity and fuel price movements. The country’s high-technology exports are relatively modest in absolute terms (about $22.5 million in 2023) but reflect ongoing diversification efforts into knowledge-intensive activities. The broader macro context suggests a positive path toward structural transformation if policy frameworks, finance, and human capital development align with investment opportunities and export growth strategies.

Trade and Investment

Senegal’s external sector is characterized by a noticeable openness yet persistent reliance on imports. Exports of goods and services comprise 28.1% of GDP in 2024, while imports account for 43.1% of GDP, indicating a trade deficit that is common among emerging economies as they modernize and diversify. The country has attracted foreign direct investment (FDI) net inflows amounting to about 15.6% of GDP in 2023, signaling a favorable climate for investors relative to many peers and a potential driver of technology transfer, infrastructure development, and productivity gains. The current account balance remains negative at roughly 19.8% of GDP in 2023, highlighting the need for continued external financing, persistent trade imbalances, and the potential vulnerability to global shocks. Trade structure shows some movement toward higher-value activities, given that high-technology exports stood at about $22.5 million in 2023, suggesting niche niches of technology-based production exist alongside traditional sectors. The governance indicators (regulatory quality and rule of law) and the political stability backdrop (with modest stability indicators in 2023) imply that while the policy environment is improving in some areas, reforms to streamline investment procedures, reduce non-tariff barriers, and enforce contracts could further enhance competitiveness and investor confidence. Overall, Senegal’s trade and investment trajectory points to opportunities in agribusiness, energy, transport infrastructure, and select high-tech niches, provided structural reforms and finance access are sustained.

Governance and Institutions

Assessment of governance in 2023 shows a mixed environment. Political stability and absence of violence/terrorism stand at -0.139, while regulatory quality sits at -0.345 and the rule of law at -0.274, reflecting challenges in policy predictability, institutional quality, and judicial effectiveness relative to global benchmarks. Control of corruption is near neutral (0.0578), and government effectiveness is modestly positive at 0.0697, suggesting limited but not insurmountable strengths in bureaucratic performance and policy execution. These indicators collectively imply a governance landscape where progress is possible but cumulative reforms—strengthening institutions, enhancing anti-corruption measures, and improving regulatory frameworks—are necessary to sustain investment, improve service delivery, and bolster social outcomes. In practice, this means ongoing efforts to streamline business licensing, enforce contracts, protect property rights, and deliver predictable public services, alongside maintaining political stability and inclusivity. The data suggest Senegal's governance is on a path toward incremental improvement, with room for deeper reforms to unlock private sector dynamism and intertemporal resilience.

Infrastructure and Technology

Senegal has made tangible strides in digital connectivity and technological capacity. Individuals using the Internet accounted for 60.6% of the population in 2023, signaling growing access to digital services, information, and opportunities for entrepreneurship. The health sector faces workforce constraints, with physicians at 0.126 per 1,000 people in 2022, pointing to gaps in primary care coverage and specialist availability that can hamper service delivery if not addressed. Renewable energy constitutes 35.4% of total final energy consumption in 2021, highlighting progress toward diversification of the energy mix, potential cost reductions, and climate resilience, while also implying ongoing investments in generation capacity and grid reliability. Life expectancy and health expenditure dynamics—4.06% of GDP in current health expenditure (2022) and government health spending per capita (PPP) around $37 (2022)—underline the importance of scaling up health coverage and efficiency. The combination of rising Internet use, a budding high-technology export sector (about $22.5 million in 2023), and moderate energy diversification positions Senegal to deepen a digital economy, expand e-government, and attract knowledge-based investment, provided finance and skills development keep pace with infrastructure needs. The environmental and resource context—moderate water stress (16.3% freshwater withdrawal as of 2021) and total greenhouse gas emissions per capita of 1.6 t CO2e in 2023—also highlights opportunities to align technology deployment with sustainable growth goals.

Environment and Sustainability

Senegal faces a climate- and resource-related development dimension that combines progress with ongoing vulnerabilities. The country records a moderate level of water stress, with freshwater withdrawal at about 16.3% of available resources in 2021, underscoring the importance of efficient water management, irrigation, and resilience to drought in agriculture and urban supply. Environmental awareness and policy interest are reflected in the renewable energy share of final energy consumption (35.4% in 2021), signaling momentum toward cleaner energy sources and reduced emissions intensity. Per-capita greenhouse gas emissions are low at 1.6 t CO2e in 2023, indicating a relatively modest climate footprint but the need to accelerate decarbonization as the economy grows and electrification expands. Undernourishment affects a portion of the population (4.6% in 2022), suggesting that food security and nutrition programs remain critical to human development outcomes. The combined environmental indicators point to a country that is pursuing growth with attention to sustainability, yet still contending with climate risk, water scarcity challenges, and the imperative to scale renewable energy deployment, strengthen climate resilience in agriculture and urban planning, and improve nutrition and health outcomes for vulnerable groups.