The Republic of Senegal is dominated by a strong presidency. Presidential elections in 2000 and National Assembly elections in 2001, held on the basis of universal suffrage, were deemed free and fair, and the incumbent was re-elected president. The next election is scheduled for February 2007. The Socialist Party dominated the National Assembly for 40 years until 2001, when a coalition headed by the Democratic Party of Senegal won 89 of 120 seats. Senegal has 10 administrative regions, each headed by a governor appointed by the President. Future presidents will serve 5-year terms and will be limited to 2 terms. The current President is the last elected to a 7-year term. There are 91 political parties in the country.

There are 25 women in the National Assembly, and 7 of 40 Cabinet ministers are women. 39 members of minorities were elected to the National Assembly, and 15 are members of Cabinet. Judges are named by the President, and the judiciary, though nominally independent, is reported to be subject to government influence.

Discrimination on the basis of gender, race, class, or language is prohibited, but the law is not enforced and discrimination occurs.
Muslims may choose a religious legal system for marriage and succession cases. In practice, many disputes are turned over to religious judges. An increase in injuries caused by mob violence is reported.

Amnesty International cites the security forces in the Casamance region for impunity. The public perception of government is one of corruption. An anti-corruption commission has been mandated to investigate charges, and several corruption cases have gained media attention. As instances of corruption, Transparency International cites cases brought against directors general of parastatals during the previous regime. Recent salary increases and the supplying of deputies with all-terrain vehicles and landed property contribute to the perception that government officials are corrupt.

Access to government information is provided for in law but is rarely possible in practice. Freedom of speech and of the press are guaranteed in law but limited in fact. Journalists practise self-censorship. Low literacy rates make the radio the main source of information. Satellite television services provide international programmes, and the Internet is not restricted. A march was held in 2005 in support of freedom of the press and ending of intimidation of journalists.

Trafficking in persons is prohibited in law, but reports indicate the country is a source, transit route and destination for trafficking. Children are trafficked from The Gambia, Mali, Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau to be exploited as talibé, Koranic students who are required to beg to support their schools. Prosecutions for rape, paedophilia, prostitution and abuse of talibé children have taken place. Statistics are not kept on such cases, but UNICEF reports there are 100,000 talibé boys and 10,000 street children in the country. The marabouts (Koranic teachers who are responsible for talibé boys) are accused of being the principal traffickers in the country. Young girls are trafficked to urban centres to work as domestics.

Homosexuality is not tolerated by society, and homosexuals have not tried to assert their rights. They face discrimination, but are not victims of violence. Education International and its member unions, SNEEL, SUDES, SYPROS, and UDEN, have instituted training programmes for teachers on HIV/AIDS prevention through education courses. Age and culturally appropriate materials are provided for use with students in schools. Persons with HIV or AIDS are not discriminated against. A free anti-retroviral programme to treat HIV/AIDS patients has been implemented. However the stigma continues, and an estimated 4,000 HIV-positive people refused to benefit from the government programme for fear of social rejection.

Education is tuition-free and compulsory for children aged 6 to 16. Families pay for books, uniforms and other school supplies. Many children do not attend school because their parents cannot afford the costs or because schools are not available. Pre-kindergartens have been established. The highest level of education attained by most children is primary school.

More girls than boys were enrolled in elementary school for the first time ever in the 2005-06 academic year. Young girls still face difficulties in getting to, and staying in, school. If forced by poverty to choose, families educate their sons. The government now provides classes in religious education in the formal school system as an alternative to Koranic schools.

However, not all parents can afford the fees for materials required in state schools. Only 23% of women over age 15 are literate compared with 43% of men. The conflict in Casamance region has resulted in many children being displaced, and they suffer the effects of conflict and malnutrition. Teachers are required to obtain government approval before leaving the country. The law applies to all public servants but is only enforced against teachers.

A 3-year programme begins at age 4. At this level 74% of education is private. Of the 1,983 teachers at this level, 80% are women and all are trained. The pupil/teacher ratio (PTR) is 28 : 1.

Education is compulsory for ages 7 to 12. Primary school begins at age 7 and continues for 6 years. At this level, 11% of education is private. The Net Enrolment Rate (NER) is 66% (48% female). Of students who enrol in Grade 1, 72% continue to the last grade of primary school. 13% of students repeat grades. 32,005 teachers (24% female) work at this level, and 51% of them are trained. The PTR is 43 : 1.

Secondary education begins at age 13 and is completed in 7 years. At this level 26% of education is private. 5% of students in upper secondary education study in technical vocational programmes. The NER is 15%. 12% of students repeat grades. There are 13,654 secondary teachers, 10,357 (14% female) in lower secondary and 3,297 (14% female) in upper secondary. 51% of secondary teachers are trained. The PTR is 26 : 1 in lower secondary and 27: 1 in upper secondary school.

52,282 students study in tertiary institutions for a Gross Enrolment Rate of 5%. At this level, 21% of education is private. 1,295 students from abroad study in Senegal, their countries of origin unspecified. 10,677 students from Senegal study abroad, mainly in France (8,329), USA (805), Morocco (435), Germany (256) and Canada (246).

The law prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities in education and in the provision of other state services, and it is enforced. There is a lack of infrastructure to assist disabled persons. 15% of new civil service positions are to be reserved for persons with disabilities. Schools for children with disabilities exist, and grants are available for vocational training for disabled persons. Regional centres assist disabled persons to receive training and funding to start a small business. However, only 30% of disabled children are enrolled in school, owing to a lack of special education training for teachers and of facilities accessible to children with disabilities.

The law provides for the granting of refugee status or asylum in accordance with the 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, and the government has established a system for providing protection to refugees. The UNHCR helps support over 20,000 Mauritanian refugees. The government cooperates with the UNHCR to assist refugees and asylum-seekers. The 20-year-old Casamance conflict has left tens of thousands of Casamancais as refugees or as internally displaced persons (IDPs). Many have returned with the improved security after the ceasefire in 2004, but some 20,000 are still reported as IDPs.

The many ethnic groups co-exist fairly peacefully, though some observers cite ethnic tensions between the Wolof and southern ethnic groups as significant in the long-running Casamance rebellion. Children from Casamance have had their education disrupted and opportunities limited by the conflict.

A few years ago in Senegal, the press published articles on what was called the breakdown of intellectuals (la panne des intellectuels). Academics were seen to have failed in providing solutions to the economic and social crises in the continent. This debate took place following a period of severe cuts in higher education in line with the policies of the World Bank at the time.

A Senegalese academic now notes that the market has hardly ever been able to provide solutions to Africa's problems, and that higher education and research are even less likely to be the areas where market solutions can be expected. He expresses concern over the increasing emphasis on market goals in the funding of research: "Markets require profit and this can crowd out important educational duties and opportunities. Basic sciences and the humanities, for example, are essential for national development. They are likely to be underfunded, unless they are actively encouraged by leaders in education who have the resources to realise this vision." The impact of increased market influence on academic freedom and on the role of academia in national development will bear watching.

Women represent 52% of the population and have equality in law but not in practice. Women do 90% of domestic work and 85% of agricultural work. Some 22% of teachers and 14% of lawyers are women. The first woman police chief was appointed in Dakar. Marriage is prohibited in law for girls under 17 and men under 21 without special dispensation from a judge. But child marriage remains a problem in rural areas. Girls as young as 9 are reported to be married to older men for religious, economic and cultural reasons.

Traditional practice makes it difficult for women to purchase property. Men are legally designated as head of the household, which allows lower taxes to be paid than by women on the same salary. Employers pay child allowances to men but not to women. Only 20% of women have paid employment. Low education levels, domestic responsibilities and multiple pregnancies are barriers to economic advancement for women. Sexual harassment is illegal but is common. Traditional customs, including polygyny and rules of inheritance, discriminate against women.

Trafficking and commercial exploitation of women and children are problems. Female genital mutilation (FGM) is performed on girls in villages throughout the country. The Minister of the Family claims that almost all women in the Fouta region are victims of FGM, as are 60% to 70% of women in the south and southeast. FGM is a criminal offence which has been prosecuted, but many still practise it openly and with impunity. Domestic violence is illegal but remains a problem.

The minimum age for employment is 15, though children under 15 work in rural areas where child labour laws are not enforced. The ILO reports that 50% of children under 16 work, about one-third of them in dangerous areas. The regulations on minimum age, working hours and hazardous working conditions are not enforced in the informal economic sector where most children work.

As noted earlier, young boys (talibés) from rural villages work for religious instructors (marabouts) in Koranic schools in conditions of servitude under the threat of physical punishment. Sex tourism is reported to be increasing, and cases of paedophilia are reported; a foreign national was charged for molesting a boy he had picked up from a school for impoverished children.

Workers can form and join trade unions, except security forces, customs officers and judges. The majority of the work force is employed in agriculture or the informal sector and thus not unionised. Only 4% of the total work force is employed in the industrial sector, but of these 45% are union members.

Collective bargaining is permitted and is practised. 44% of workers are covered by collective agreements. The right to strike is guaranteed but is subject to restrictions. Education health, transportation, manufacturing, justice and oil workers held strikes during the year. The labour law applies in the export processing zone. Forced or compulsory labour is prohibited but occurs.

The minimum wage is US$0.42 (209.10 CFA francs) an hour, which does not provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. A standard work week of 40 to 48 hours is in place.