Senegal

Location:
Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania
Geographc Coordinates:
14 00 N, 14 00 W
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 196,190 sq km
land: 192,000 sq km
water: 4,190 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than South Dakota
Land boundaries:
total: 2,640 km
border countries: The Gambia 740 km, Guinea 330 km, Guinea-Bissau 338 km, Mali 419 km, Mauritania 813 km
Coastline:
531 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Climate:
tropical; hot, humid; rainy season (May to November) has strong southeast winds; dry season (December to April) dominated by hot, dry, harmattan wind
Terrain:
generally low, rolling, plains rising to foothills in southeast
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed feature near Nepen Diakha 581 m
Natural resources:
fish, phosphates, iron ore
Land use:
arable land: 12.51%
permanent crops: 0.24%
other: 87.25% (2005)
Irrigated land:
1,200 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
39.4 cu km (1987)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 2.22 cu km/yr (4%/3%/93%)
per capita: 190 cu m/yr (2002)
Natural hazards:
lowlands seasonally flooded; periodic droughts
Environment - current issues:
wildlife populations threatened by poaching; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; overfishing
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
Geography - note:
westernmost country on the African continent; The Gambia is almost an enclave within Senegal