Senegal Colonized by French tradesmen from 1659, it became the first French colony in Africa in 1854. A part of
French West Africa, it was made a French Overseas Territory in 1946, an autonomous republic in 1958, joined in a short-lived federation with Soudan (which then became Mali) in 1959, and became independent in 1960, with
Senghor as the country's first President. By that time, Senegal had developed a relatively rich and active political culture, dating back to the nineteenth century, when its towns had elected a deputy to the French Assembly in Paris (1848, and from 1876). As a result, the country was relatively stable politically upon independence. Senghor quickly established his domination in the political sphere, asserting himself against his rival, Mamadou Dia (b. 1911), in 1962, and gradually creating a single-party state through the absorption or banning of other political parties, 1966–74. Despite the absence of a multi-party democracy, however, there was considerable discussion within Senghor's own party, renamed the Parti Socialiste (PS, Socialist Party) in 1976. Senghor maintained good relations with France, and gradually introduced market-orientated measures to undo his earlier policies of nationalization and moderate state planning.
Senghor and his more efficient successor,
Diouf, failed to change significantly the country's key economic problem, its over-reliance on its main crop, peanuts. In 1982, Senegal entered a confederation with Gambia, in which both countries retained their sovereignty but were committed to pursue common goals in economic, education, foreign, and defence policy.
Senegambia fell apart in 1989, mainly because of mutual mistrust, and Gambian protests about Senegalese dominance. In the 1990s Diouf continued his policies of political liberalization through involving some politicians of the opposition in his government, though the integration of the opposition also had the effect of cancelling out any major challenges to his own power. Despite impressive economic growth rates in the 1990s, Senegal's main problems continued to be the growing armed conflict in the region, notably the separatist movement in the southern part, the Casamance. Other problems included the difference between town and country expressed in the latter's appalling medical and educational provision, and a large number of unemployed in Dakar and other cities. In 2000, the opposition united in the second round of the presidential elections, whereupon Diouf lost to Abdoulaye Wade, an event that ended the Socialist Party's 40-year grip on power. Wade attempted to broker a peace agreement with the rebel Movement of the Democratic Forces of the Casamance. He also instituted political reforms to increase the power of parliament at the expense of the President.
