U.S. FOREIGN ASSISTANCE PERFORMANCE PUBLICATION FY 2009

Senegal is a relatively stable and democratic country with a Muslim majority population, and its interests and values are closely aligned with those of the USG. However, the country faces internal threats to its stability, including a growing youth demographic with limited employment prospects, increasing urbanization, limited access to public and social services, and limited private sector investment. The USG's foreign assistance goals in Senegal include encouraging democracy, the rule of law, good governance, and national reconciliation; promoting economic growth and free-market development; combating transnational crime and promoting regional stability; promoting agriculture and rural development that employs good natural resource management principles; and investing in people by improving health care and education. The USG's highest priority in Senegal is to strengthen democratic systems and governance practices, as the country has seen erosion in recent years of its democratic institutions and a weaker performance in transparency and accountability. Supporting national reconciliation and a resolution to the Casamance conflict is also a key component in promoting long-term stability for Senegal and the region. The USG has been working to bring together conflicting parties and assist civil society actors to place increased pressure on leaders to pursue discussions on a political level. In FY 2009, the USG trained 40,824 middle school students in conflict resolution and peace building skills, and reached approximately 41,000 people directly involved in, or affected by, the conflict with messages and opportunities for dialogue on how to resolve the conflict. The USG also supports the Senegalese police force, security service, and military, so that they can maintain their combined reputation as one of the most professional, apolitical, and effective security sectors in west Africa. In FY 2009, the USG trained 25 Senegalese military officers, which increased multinational staff expertise and interoperability, and produced a higher percentage of English-speaking officers than all other West African Francophone countries. As a result, Senegalese officers are in high demand by the United Nations (UN) for peacekeeping missions all over the world. In the health sector, the USG worked to improve efficiency and transparency in the management of the health sector budget by establishing national health accounts. As a result, the Government of Senegal (GOS) realigned its health budget after discovering that few resources were going to reproductive health and that local health districts were severely under-funded, given their responsibilities. In the education sector, over 6,000 parents' association leaders, regional and local council officials, and Ministry of Education representatives were trained on improved systems for planning, budgeting, and delivering educational inputs and resources to middle schools. The USG also worked with officials from the GOS to improve internal controls on corruption, to standardize governmental operating processes and procedures, and to support decentralization to strengthen local government and improve accountability through citizen participation in local governments. Finally, the USG strengthened civil society organizations to play their oversight role more effectively, to advocate for a return to openness and transparency, and to counterbalance the decline of Senegal's democratic institutions. Senegal has made great strides in improving the health and education of its citizens over the past decades. Infant mortality has declined from 173 per 1,000 live births in 1960 to 58.9 per 1,000 in 2009; life expectancy at birth has increased from 37.5 in 1960 to 57.1 in 2009; and primary school enrollment has gone from 47.1 percent in 1990 to 92.5 percent in 2009. Nevertheless, Senegal still faces significant challenges in these areas, and the USG continues to work with the GOS to address these issues and promote further progress. The USG has also increased its support to the agricultural sector by launching the Feed the Future initiative in FY 2009. This initiative, which represents a multi-million dollar investment in agriculture, is helping Senegal grow its economy and decrease its dependence on food imports. In FY 2009, the Government of Senegal (GOS) also signed a Millennium Challenge Corporation Compact worth $540 million. This compact will further support economic development in Senegal by greatly improving the country's road infrastructure in the underserved north and south, and by improving agricultural productivity through a large-scale irrigation program in the arid north.