For centuries, Senegal's location and wealth of inland waterways have attracted the attention and influence of external actors. As part of the western Trans-Saharan trade route, the country's namesake Senegal River forged ties to the Arab world. In 1659, France established a colony in what is now the city of St. Louis. From there, it projected its power farther inland, transforming the small colony into the capital of French West Africa in the 19th century. With the passing decades, however, population centers began to spring up along the coast, and in 1902, France moved its capital south to Dakar, a bustling port city on the Cap-Vert peninsula.
In addition to its position on the Atlantic Ocean and its penetrating waterways, Senegal's population size has also contributed to its influence in West Africa. Though small relative to other countries in the world, Senegal's population — estimated at 14 million people — dwarfs those of most nearby nations. Furthermore, more than 3 million people live in Dakar and its suburbs, making the capital city a cultural and economic hub in West Africa, second only to Abidjan in Ivory Coast.
Despite the advantages that Senegal's location has afforded it, the country's geography has also proved troublesome at times, as its unusual shape attests. Before laying claim to Senegal, France was embroiled in a fierce competition with the United Kingdom for power and territory in the region. The United Kingdom eventually colonized the land on either side of the Gambia River, driving a wedge between France's holdings around the Senegal River to the north and the Casamance River to the south. Centuries later, after Senegal gained its independence from France in 1960, the country's southernmost Casamance region — whose ethnic and religious makeup differs from the rest of Senegal — sought greater autonomy. Many groups in the region could trace their heritage to ancestors who had fought against the Arab and European slave trades, lending credence to the narrative that they were separate peoples from those clustered around Dakar and in the north.
Dakar rejected these claims of autonomy and discontent in Casamance grew, eventually erupting into a full-fledged independence movement in 1982. For decades, conflict has simmered in the area between the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance — allegedly with help from Gambia and Guinea-Bissau — and the Senegalese state. Nonetheless, Dakar has kept control over the restive region by militarily engaging rebels, arresting separatist leaders and signing fragile peace agreements. Though the latest truce, struck in 2014, has held up so far, it has not resolved the rebels' long-standing grievances. Since Casamance is fairly isolated from the rest of the country, and since Dakar lacks the means to devote significant resources to the region's development, the separatist movement is sure to continue for years to come.
