Senegal - Security
It is advisable to consult a website such as the UK FCO before visiting here.
Overall Crime and Safety
Street crime is very common, particularly in urban areas, and are mostly crimes of opportunity; backpack/purse snatching and theft from vehicles, Aggressive vendors, panhandlers, and street children often attempt to divert victims’ attention while an accomplice steals valuables. It is advisable not to accept items offered to them by anyone on the street unless planning to buy it. This is a favourite ploy of street criminals.
Specific Areas of Concern
The Casamance region of south-western Senegal (between the southern border of Gambia and the northern border of Guinea-Bissau) remains affected by incidents involving armed separatist groups and banditry, particularly in the regions of Bignona and Sindian. These incidents are largely focused against Senegalese security forces and not toward visitors.
Dakar. Pick pocketing and street crime (including in taxis), occasionally involving violence, are common in parts of Dakar, particularly around Place de l’Independence, the central area of the Plateau, the Western Corniche, and the airport. You should take sensible precautions, avoid walking alone in the late afternoon and after dark and avoid carrying valuables in public.
Scam Artists. Visitors are increasingly being targeted by scam artists operating in West Africa. The scams come in many forms (romance and friendship, business ventures, work and employment opportunities) and can pose great financial risk to victims. You should be cautious about requests for funds, a job offer, a business venture or a face to face meeting from someone you have been in correspondence with over the internet who lives in West Africa, including from people who claim to be victims of various Western African conflicts (notably refugees from Sierra Leone) or relatives of present or former political leaders.
Road Safety. Take extra care while driving in Senegal. The quality of some of the roads may be unpredictable due to landslides or flooding during the rainy seasons (June – September). If there have been recent strong rains, take extra precautions while driving, especially at night.
Maritime Issues
Cruisers taking the normal precautions (nothing of value in sight, only small amounts of money in the pocket, establishing contact with locals and shops near the anchorage, buying from locals etc.) report feeling very safe here, both at anchor and on land.
Migrant Boats. There has been a sharp rise in the number of migrants arriving in the Canary Islands with the Atlantic route from West Africa to the Canary Islands being increasingly used by smugglers who launch boats from Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Senegal and even the Gambia.
Up to the end of November 2021, more than 18,000 people had reached the Canary Islands this way. See this report for more details and what do do if you encounter a migrant boat.
Emergency Numbers
See General Info for more details.
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CASAMANCE EXPERIENCE:
We arrived in Zinguichor directly from The Gambia without going to Dakar first. I can not recommend anyone else to do this. Overall the experience with the authorities here has been horrible. Mandatory military checkpoints are along the river and tributaries, we were not told by the customs or military they were required but we got in trouble each time we passed one (they are difficult to see).
Once we were forced to stop sailing and anchor, another time we were forced to go back 2NM to a dangerous jetty where the current pinned us for 6 hours. The military all carry large machine guns in an aggressive manner and are by no means friendly or provide an explanation for these requirements.
The Port authority in Zinguichor demanded 160€ at check in showing us a paper saying the money is for a river cruising permit. After returning many times, and explaining we cannot afford such a large fee and undergoing a very stressful and unpleasant day, the port captain in the end chose to waive the fee when we said that we would leave Senegal directly.
After going to 3 offices for customs, we went to the airport, where a plain clothed police man demanded we pay again for a visa for the country. We showed him online there are no visas needed for our passports, he flashed his gun at us and told us to pay him what we thought it was worth. We declined again and asked for any document saying that the fees are required, he said it doesn’t exist.
In the end we didn’t pay but felt extremely uncomfortable, and he put an exit stamp in our passport for only 1 week as punishment forcing us to leave by this date because we refused to pay his bribe. The local people here are friendly and the river is beautiful but our experience is severely marred by the military and authorities. It is hard to feel welcome when treated like this.
On the other hand The Gambia was very pleasant, we had to pay 40€ each to enter. We wish we had skipped Senegal and stayed longer in The Gambia.
Visa regulations have again changed, as of May 1 2015 the biometric visas are no longer required for most nationalities and you can just get an entry stamp upon arrival.
Visa regulations have been changed:
Valid from 1 July 2013, Senegal requires visa for ALL visitors except West Africans (CEDEAO countries + Morocco and Mauretania). The visa type is biometrical so honorary consulates will not be able to issue them.