The Senegalese fisheries are predominantly artisanal, i.e. they take place by the use of canoes operated by traditional fishing communities, some also fishing on foot without vessels. There are an important number of landing sites for the marine sector along the 700 km long Atlantic coast from Saint Louis in the north to Boudiédiéte in the south. Inland fisheries are mainly found in the deltas of the three main rivers; Senegal, Saloum and Casamance. About 82 000 fishers work in the artisanal sector, with a more or less equal distribution between the marine and the inland sector. In addition there are some 37 600 jobs in ancillary activities, mainly fish processing and marketing, giving a total of 119 600 jobs in the sector. 30 percent of the workforce are women.

It is estimated that there are some 30 300 fishing units in the Senegalese artisanal fisheries sector. This includes some 9 200 motorised canoes fishing in the Atlantic as well as handheld gear (i.e. fishing without boats), motorised and non-motorised canoes in inland waters.

Total annual landings of the artisanal sector are estimated at 488 100 tonnes at a value of USD 109 million. The marine artisanal fleet lands 85-90 percent of this total. It is estimated that 66 percent of the artisanal catch is consumed locally in country. The share for local human consumption is higher for inland catches (75 percent) than for marine (66%).

Data on fuel consumption is available for the marine artisanal fleet. There is great variation in the amount of fish that is caught per unit of fuel consumed, from less than one tonne of fish per tonne of fuel (pots, longlines, beach seines) to over 20 tonnes per tonne of fuel (purse seines operated by two boats and ringnets). On average, the sector catches about 10 tonnes of fish per each tonne of fuel used.

More information on employment is found in Table1

More detailed information on fishing capacity, production, utilisation, and economic performance is included in Table 2.