Senegal Has Not Announced Arabic as the New Official Language, Replacing French

Misbar investigated the circulating claim and found it to be fake, as the Senegalese government has not announced any decision to adopt Arabic as an official language in the country, replacing French.

Senegal Has Not Adopted Arabic as a New Official Language

Many news sites have reported that Senegal has adopted Arabic as an official language following a cabinet meeting last Sunday. However, upon investigation, it was revealed that the latest cabinet meeting in Senegal was held on Wednesday, April 24, focusing on price increases and monitoring measures, without any announcement of a new official language. The Arabic language was only mentioned in the context of instructions from the Senegalese President regarding the establishment of a monitoring system for youth employment support policies and ensuring the rapid professional integration of graduates who have studied in both French and Arabic.

The Senegalese Cabinet Meeting Discusses Issues Related to Price Increases

During its meeting at the Presidential Palace on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, chaired by President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, the Senegalese cabinet discussed issues related to combating the rising cost of living, deregulating markets for consumer goods and services, and monitoring prices. Additionally, measures to reduce and regulate rental costs, facilitate access to suitable housing, and other matters were addressed.

Moreover, the Senegalese President directed the Prime Minister and ministers responsible for trade, industry, finance, budget, and agriculture to propose an emergency action plan to address the rising cost of living. They were instructed to submit this plan by May 15, 2024. Furthermore, they were asked to include bold measures in the plan to reduce prices of daily consumer goods and some essential services.

The New Senegalese President and the Fight Against French Cultural Dominance

The claim emerged in the context of the political transition following the presidential elections, which brought Bassirou Diomaye Faye to power from the opposition.

Fighting French cultural dominance is one of the key points and electoral promises in Bassirou Faye's program, which has garnered significant response from Senegalese citizens. He pledged to review cultural policies associated with the French language and promised further openness to the English language.

Currently, French is the only official language in Senegal since its independence from France in 1960, despite having 39 local languages. In recent years, the status of the Arabic language has been recognized in Senegal, and more opportunities have been provided for its speakers to access government positions, making proficiency in it an additional advantage for officials.

The Status of the Arabic Language in Senegal

The Arabic language enjoys a special status in Senegal, being firstly the language of Islam, which is embraced by nearly 95% of the Senegalese people, and secondly as a national language alongside 36 other languages used in the country.

Arabic has been taught in Senegalese secondary schools since 1976, owing to the emphasis placed by Senegalese President Léopold Sédar Senghor on the teaching of the Arabic language and civilization. Based on this, the President decided to introduce Arabic language teaching into the Senegalese educational system starting from the academic year of October 1976, in secondary education, where all literature students were required to learn either Arabic or Latin as a classical language according to their choice.

However, to this day, Mauritania remains the only country in West Africa that considers Arabic as an official language.

Read More

This Video Features a Senegalese Parade, Not Nigerian or Nigerien Forces

No Reports On A Bill From The U.S. Congress For Questioning the 9/11 Narrative