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Telecommunications in Senegal include radio, television, fixed and mobile telephones, and the Internet.

In 2012 the country had roughly 338,200 landlines for its 13.0 million inhabitants. A number of cyber cafés are located in the capital, Dakar, and other cities.

Regulation

Sonatel, Senegal's main telecommunications operator, was privatized in 1997 with France Télécom as the strategic partner. Sonatel continues to dominate the market. Liberalization of some services accompanied privatization. Two companies now provide cellular telephone services, and there is a competitive Internet services market.

  • One (1997).
  • Television sets: 361,000 (1997).

Radio is the most important medium of mass information and source of news due to the high illiteracy rate.

Radiodiffusion Télévision Sénégalaise (RTS) and 2sTV are the two main TV channels.

The government maintains control of locally televised information and opinion through RTS. By law, the government holds a majority interest in RTS, and the president directly or indirectly controls selection of all members of the 12-person RTS executive staff. However, in addition to RTS, five privately owned television channels are operating. In 2012 a fourth license was awarded to CSU/Hayo, permitting them to offer mobile, fixed, wifi, and wimax services.

thumb|300px|The [[Atlantis-2 cable system. #4 is Dakar, Senegal.]]

  • Calling code: +221, international calls to most countries can be dialed directly.
  • International call prefix: 00
  • Main lines:
  • 338,200 lines in use, 110th in the world (2012);
  • 2.5 million users, 84th in the world; 19.2% of the population, 145th in the world (2012).
  • 1.8 million users, 76th in the world (2009).
  • Wireless broadband: 486,490 subscribers, 92nd in the world; 3.8% of the population, 117th in the world (2012).
  • Internet hosts: 237 hosts, 197th in the world (2012).
  • Internet service providers: 762 ISPs (2014).

Internet censorship and surveillance

There are no government restrictions on access to the Internet, or reports that the government monitors e-mail or Internet chat rooms without appropriate legal authority. Individuals and groups engage in the peaceful expression of views via the Internet, including by e‑mail. However, in 2023 and 2024, the government shut down all mobile internet access by all providers several times to prohibit communication during periods of unrest due to trials and imprisonment of Ousmane Sonko (2023) and the suspension and delay of the February 2024 national election (2024).

The constitution and law provide for freedom of speech and press; however, the government limits these rights in practice. Individuals can generally criticize the government publicly or privately without reprisal. The law criminalizes libel, and libel laws are used to block or punish critical reporting and commentary. The constitution and law prohibit arbitrary interference with privacy, family, home, or correspondence, and the government generally respects these prohibitions in practice. The Consortium des Bibliothèques de l'Enseignement Supérieur du Sénégal (academic library consortium) and the Association Sénégalaise des Bibliothécaires, Archivistes et Documentalistes (professional society) have signed the Budapest Open Access Initiative.

The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs funded in 2004–2007 the creation of scholarly publishing platforms in Africa ("Système d’information scientifique et technique"), which led to the 2006 launch of SIST Sénégal. According to UNESCO, the Bibliothèque SIST Sénégal is one of two open access repositories in Senegal, the other being Biens Culturels Africains at the Institut Fondamental d'Afrique Noire.

See also

  • Media of Senegal
  • Radiodiffusion Télévision Sénégalaise, the Senegalese public broadcasting company.
  • Terrestrial fibre optic cable projects in Senegal

References

  • NIC Senegal, registrar for the .sn domain.