Senegal
As of midyear 2020, Senegal had a population of 16.74million, an annual population growth rate of 2.8%, and 43% of the population under age 15. The Total Fertility Rate, or the average number of children per woman over the course of her lifetime, had declined from 6.6 in 1990, to 5.2 in 2015, to 4.6 in 2019. The rate of modern contraceptive use (mCPR) in Senegal has risen steadily in recent years but is still very low. Overall, 28% of all women in reproductive years use a method of contraception and 26% use a modern method of contraception. The use of family planning is on the rise and Senegal is on the gradual path to a population age structure that may enable it to experience a demographic dividend.
Senegal Development Data:
Economic Indicators
Percent of Population living on less than $1.9 per day (2011): 38%
Annual GDP Growth rate: 5.3%
GINI Index (2011): 40.3
Demographic Indicators
Total Fertility Rate: 4.6 children per woman
Percent of Population Under 15: 43%
Dependency Ratio: 85 dependents per 100 working-age adults
Health Indicators
Life Expectancy: 67.6 years
Infant Mortality: 42 deaths per 1,000 live births
Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (all methods): 28%
Education Indicators
World bank education indicators (201
Primary education net enrollment: 53.8%
Proportion completing primary: 57.1%
Net enrollment in secondary education: 25.8%
Gross enrollment in tertiary education: 12.74%
Adult literacy rate (+15 years): 52%
Completed Primary School or Higher
Among Men ages 15-19: 50%
Among Men ages 20-24: 49.1%
Among Women ages 15-19: 51.3%
Among Women ages 20-24: 46.1%
Completed Secondary School or Higher
Among Men ages 20-24: 10.7%
Among Women ages 20-24: 8.1%
Mean schooling for males ages 15-49: 6.5 years
Median schooling for females ages 15-49: 6.3 years
Governance Indicators
Political Stability: -0.015
Government Effectiveness: -0.67
Global Competitiveness Index: 3.6
Senegal’s population pyramids, from 1970 to 2010, reveal only a slight narrowing at the base of the pyramid. Indeed, between 1970 and 2010, fertility did decline from 7.3 children per woman to 5.0 children per woman. Despite the slow reduction in fertility, Senegal’s population age structure hasn’t changed significantly in the last 40 years. Total fertility rates remain high and, in general, each working age adult supports several dependents. “Senegal 2030” shows a narrowing of the bottom of the pyramid, based on United Nations projections that assume a decline in total fertility to 3.9 children per woman over her lifespan. “Senegal 2050” shows a more significant narrowing of the base of the population pyramid, based on the assumption that fertility will decline further to 3.1 children per woman. In this 2050 scenario, Senegal would have a larger proportion of the population working-age and, if able to secure employment, able to contribute to economic growth.
43 percent of Senegal’s population is under age 15
Working Towards a Demographic Dividend in Senegal
If Senegal makes substantial investments in reproductive health and family planning, then fertility levels may begin to decline more significantly, and children will be more likely to achieve better basic levels of health. With additional investments in health and education, and economic initiatives to facilitate job creation, Senegal may be able to experience the rapid economic growth known as a demographic dividend. There is some ongoing work on the topic of a demographic dividend in Senegal.
- National Transfer Accounts project created a country brief on the subject of the generational economy and the demographic dividend in Senegal.
Sources
Population Reference Bureau, 2019 World Population Data Sheet, (Washington, DC: Population Reference Bureau, 2019).
United Nations Population Division, World Population Prospects: The 2012 Revision, (New York: United Nations, 2013).
World Bank Group. (2019) World DataBank. Retrieved from http://databank.worldbank.org/data/home.aspx
Education statistics were taken from: Barro, Robert and Jong-Wha Lee, April 2010, “A New Data Set of Educational Attainment in the World, 1950-2010.” Journal of Development Economics, vol 104, pp.184-198. Retrieved 4/10/2015 from www.barrolee.com
World Bank Group. (2014) Worldwide Governance Indicators. Retrieved from http://info.worldbank.org/governance/wgi/index.aspx#home
World Economic Forum, Global Competitiveness Report 2014-2015, (Geneva: Switzerland, 2014).
Definitions
Gini index measures the extent to which the distribution of income or consumption expenditure among individuals or households within an economy deviates from a perfectly equal distribution. Thus a Gini index of 0 represents perfect equality, while an index of 100 implies perfect inequality.
Dependency ratio is the ratio of dependents–people younger than 15 or older than 64–to the working-age population–those ages 15 to 64. Although each country’s experience is different, countries that have realized a demographic dividend typically have a dependency ratio of less than 50 dependents for every 100 working-age adults.
Worldwide Governance Indicators are measured on a scale from -2.5 to +2.5. The closer to 2.5 the rating is, the stronger the governance. Government Effectiveness is a composite governance indicator with data from multiple sources. Political stability and Absence of Violence/Terrorism is a composite governance indicator with data from multiple sources More information on methodology available at: http://info.worldbank.org/governance/wgi/index.aspx#home
Global Competitiveness Index defines competitiveness as the set of institutions, policies and factors that determine the level of productivity of a country. The level of productivity, in turn, sets the level of prosperity that can be earned by an economy. The different aspects of competitiveness are captured in 12 pillars, ranging from institutional strength to market size. http://reports.weforum.org/global-competitiveness-report-2014-2015/