SHARECountry Data
Senegal (Republic of Senegal) has a Unicameral parliament with legislated quotas for the single/lower house and at the sub-national level. 70 of 164 (43%) seats in the Assemblée nationale / National Assembly are held by women.
At a glance
Structure of Parliament: Unicameral
Are there legislated quotas...
- For the Single/Lower House? Yes
- For the Sub-National Level? Yes
Are there voluntary quotas...
- Adopted by political parties? No
Is there additional information?...
- Yes
Last updated: Aug 14, 2022
Single/Lower House
Assemblée nationale / National Assembly
| Total seats | 164 |
| Total Women | 70 |
| % Women | 43% |
| Election Year | 2017 |
| Electoral System | Parallel |
| Quota Type | Legislated Candidate Quotas |
| Election details | IDEA Voter Turnout - IPU Parline |
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: Legislated Candidate Quotas | Constitution | |
| Electoral law | Electoral Law 92-16 of 1992, as amended by law 2012-01 of 2012, Article L.145, mandates parity in all candidate lists for the general elections. Candidate lists must be composed of alternating male and female candidates. As Senegal has a parallel electoral system the provisions of parity apply to both the list of candidates submitted for seats elected through a proportional representation system and the seats contested through a majority system in multi-member constituencies. If the number of seats contested in a constituency is odd, the parity rule applies to the immediately lower odd number (e.g. in a multi-member constituency with 5 seats, a party must have at least 3 women in its list of 5 candidates). |
|
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance | Electoral law | Candidate lists which do not comply with the provisions of Article L.145 (parity and gender alternation) will not be admitted. |
| Rank order/placement rules | Electoral law | The 2012 amendment to the electoral law provides for alternation between female and male candidates on the electoral lists. |
| Is the provision of direct public funding to political parties related to gender equality among candidates? | No | See more in International IDEA's Political Finance database |
| Are there provisions for other financial advantages to encourage gender equality in political parties? | No data | See more in International IDEA's Political Finance database |
Quota at the Sub-National Level
- Quota type: Legislated Candidate Quotas
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: Legislated Candidate Quotas | Constitution | |
| Electoral law | The electoral law mandates parity for all candidate lists for the regional, municipal and rural elections, with the provision that candidate lists must be composed of alternating candidates of both sexes. If the number of seats contested is odd, the parity rule applies to the immediately lower odd number (Articles L.229 (2), L.263 (2), L.294 (2) and R.81). |
|
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance | Electoral law | Candidate lists which do not comply with the gender parity and alternation provisions will not be admissible (Articles L.245 (2), L.279 (5), L.308 (2) and R.81). |
| Rank order/placement rules | Electoral law | The 2012 amendment to the electoral law provides for alternation between female and male candidates on the electoral lists (Articles L.229 (2), L.263 (2), L.294 (2) and R.81). |
Additional Information
On June 2010, Senegal adopted amendments to the election law introducing the requirement for gender parity in candidate lists for proportional and majority contests in legislative, regional, municipal and rural elections. Candidate lists, as well as alternative lists, are thus required to present an equal number of male and female candidates for national, municipal and local elections. Amendments also introduced the provision for a mandatory disqualification of those lists that do not comply with the parity principle. Electoral contestants will be given three days to revise their lists to comply with the requirement of gender parity. The 2012 legislative elections were the first to be held after the adoption of the quota provisions.
In accordance with constitutional amendments adopted in March 2016, the statutory number of members of the National Assembly increased from 150 to 165, to include 15 seats for the Senegalese diaspora. (IPU)
Sources
LEGAL SOURCES:
- Constitution of Senegal (French version)
- Loi no 2012-01 du 3 janvier 2012 abrogeant et remplaçant la loi no 92-16 du 07 février 1992 relative au Code Electoral (Partie législative), modifiée [Law no. 2012-01 of 3 January 2012 replacing Law no. 92- 16 of 7 February 1992 on the Electoral Code, amended]
OTHER SOURCES:
- Inter-Parliamentary Union [IPU] Parline - Senegal Country Profile
Additional reading
- Senegalese Parliament website, http://www.assemblee-nationale.sn/
- Kohnert, D. & Marfaing, L. (2019). Senegal: Presidential elections 2019 - The shining example of democratic transition immersed in muddy power-politics. Institute of African Affairs: GIGA-Hamburg.
- Durantaye-Guillard, C. (2019). The political empowerment of Senegalese women: Understanding gender quotas from women’s accounts. Department of Political Science, McGill University: Montréal. [Thesis]
- Riley, E. (2019). Gender parity and the politics of representation in Senegal.
- Tøraasen, M. (2017). Gender parity in Senegal – A continuing struggle. Chr. Michelsen Institute Insight (2).
- Osei, A. (2012). Party-voter linkage in Senegal. The rise and fall of Abdoulaye Wade and the Parti Démocratique Sénégalais. Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa [EISA], 12(1), 84-108.
- NDI. (2005). Money in politics: A study of party financing practices in 22 countries.
- De Diop, A. (2002) Les quotas en Africa francophone : Des débuts modestes, in International IDEA. Les Femmes au parlement : Au-Delà du Nombre (Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers), International IDEA, Stockholm, Sweden.
- Diop, A.S. (February 12, 2001). Senegalese Women Want To Be Elected Not Electors, Panafrican News Agency (PANA). [Newswire]
- Diaw, A. et al.(1999). Campagnes législative de 1998: Démocratie où-es-tu? Dakar: Conseil Sénégalais des femmes (Senegalese Women’s Council) (COSEF).
- Inter-Parliamentary Union. (1997). Democracy Still in the Making: A World Comparative Study. Geneva: Inter-Parliamentary Union.