A founding member of OHADA, WAEMU and ECOWAS, and home to the Central Bank of West African States, Senegal combines civil-law national legislation, uniform OHADA law and West African community law. This page sets out how they fit together, and which prevails in case of conflict.
Select an organization to see its members, or display overlaps with Senegal. The map challenge offers six legal geography questions. The map is in French.
Constitutional Council, Supreme Court, Court of Auditors
Currency
CFA franc (XOF), issued by the BCEAO, headquartered in Dakar
Regional organizations
7, including the AU and AfCFTA
Senegal at the crossroads of regional organizations
A member of seven organizations, Senegal is subject to complementary legal regimes: uniform business law (OHADA), economic and monetary union (WAEMU), regional integration (ECOWAS) and shared management of the Senegal and Gambia rivers (OMVS, OMVG).
OHADA
founding member (1993)
Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa
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Seat
Yaoundé (Permanent Secretariat) · 17 Member states
Regulatory approach
Uniform Acts directly applicable without transposition: companies, securities, debt recovery, insolvency, arbitration, general commercial law.
Effect in Senegalese law
Supranationality: Uniform Acts apply notwithstanding any conflicting provision of domestic law, whether earlier or later (Treaty, art. 10).
Court
CCJA (Abidjan): court of cassation for the application of Uniform Acts, in place of the Supreme Court of Senegal.
Legal data stakes
Foundation of the LegOmnia database under construction: CCJA case law and Senegalese decisions applying the Uniform Acts.
WAEMU
founding member (1994)
West African Economic and Monetary Union
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Seat
Ouagadougou · 8 Member states
Regulatory approach
Directly applicable regulations and directives to be transposed; common competition policy; CFA franc issued by the BCEAO, headquartered in Dakar.
Effect in Senegalese law
Primacy of community law: regulations apply without any national transposition measure.
Court
WAEMU Court of Justice (Ouagadougou).
Legal data stakes
Regulations, directives and Commission decisions, notably on competition, taxation and banking law.
ECOWAS
founding member (1975)
Economic Community of West African States
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Seat
Abuja · 12 Member states
Regulatory approach
Revised Treaty, protocols (free movement, trade) and supplementary acts adopted by the community bodies.
Effect in Senegalese law
Ratified treaties and protocols prevail over statutes (Constitution, art. 98), subject to reciprocity.
Court
ECOWAS Court of Justice (Abuja), directly accessible to individuals in human rights matters.
Legal data stakes
Case law of the ECOWAS Court, notably on human rights, and free movement texts.
AU
founding member of the OAU (1963)
African Union
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Seat
Addis Ababa · 55 Member states
Regulatory approach
Constitutive Act and continental conventions (human rights, cybersecurity, data protection), applicable after signature and ratification.
Effect in Senegalese law
Ratified and published conventions prevail over statutes (Constitution, art. 98), subject to reciprocity.
Court
African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights (Arusha), within the limits of the ratified protocols.
Legal data stakes
Reference for continental standards, notably on personal data protection.
AfCFTA
State party to the Agreement
African Continental Free Trade Area
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Seat
Accra (Secretariat) · 54 Member states
Regulatory approach
Framework agreement and protocols: goods, services, investment, competition, intellectual property, digital trade.
Effect in Senegalese law
In case of conflict with a regional agreement, the Agreement prevails, except between states that have achieved deeper integration (art. 19), as within WAEMU.
Court
State-to-state dispute settlement mechanism modelled on the WTO.
Legal data stakes
Monitoring of trade commitments and national implementing texts.
OMVS
founding member (1972)
Senegal River Basin Development Organization
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Seat
Dakar · 4 Member states
Regulatory approach
Joint management of the Senegal River: shared infrastructure, energy, navigation, irrigation, water allocation.
Effect in Senegalese law
Conventions subject to the general treaty regime (art. 98).
Court
No community court.
Legal data stakes
Basin conventions and texts on the management of shared infrastructure.
OMVG
founding member (1978)
Gambia River Basin Development Organization
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Seat
Dakar · 4 Member states
Regulatory approach
Joint management of the Gambia and neighbouring river basins: energy, power interconnection, development works.
Effect in Senegalese law
Conventions subject to the general treaty regime (art. 98).
Court
No community court.
Legal data stakes
Basin conventions and texts on shared infrastructure and energy.
Common pitfalls: Senegal is not a member
CEMAC : Economic and monetary union of six Central African states. It also uses a CFA franc, but one issued by the BEAC: Senegal belongs to WAEMU and the BCEAO.
WAMZ : West African Monetary Zone, bringing together six ECOWAS states outside the CFA franc, including neighbouring Gambia and Guinea. Senegal is not a member.
Entente : Council of the Entente, a cooperation organization of five West African states founded in 1959. Senegal is not a member.
OHADA and WAEMU: how they fit together
The eight WAEMU member states, including Senegal, also belong to OHADA. Two bodies of community law therefore apply there at the same time, with distinct scopes but points of contact.
Complementarity
OHADA focuses strictly on legal certainty for business and commercial law, while WAEMU has a broader remit: monetary policy, customs union, financial markets, taxation.
Coexistence and conflicts of norms
In the eight countries belonging to both organizations, collisions can arise between OHADA Uniform Acts and WAEMU regulations or directives, for example in accounting or financial law.
A permanent consultation framework
To avoid conflicts of competence and harmonise their action, a Permanent Consultation Framework has been set up between OHADA and the WAEMU institutions.
The Senegalese legal order has five levels. OHADA law and WAEMU law hold a special place: directly applicable, they prevail even over a later statute.
Level 1 · supreme norm
Constitution
The Constitution of 22 January 2001 sits at the top of the legal order. An international commitment containing a conflicting clause can only be ratified after the Constitution has been amended.
Legal basis : Constitution, art. 97Guardian : Constitutional Council
Level 2 · supranational
OHADA and WAEMU law
OHADA Uniform Acts and WAEMU regulations are directly applicable and prevail over any conflicting provision of domestic law, whether earlier or later. WAEMU directives, by contrast, must be transposed.
What about case law? It does not appear in the pyramid, but it shows how each level applies in practice. That is precisely the body of law LegOmnia is working to structure and make accessible.
Test your knowledge
Two interactive exercises: resolve real conflicts between norms, then check what you know about Senegal's regional integration.
The norms referee
Score : 0
Case 1/6
A WAEMU regulation conflicts with a Senegalese statute.
Which norm or court prevails?
Quiz: regional integration
Score : 0
Question 1/15
Which type of entity is governed by a specific Uniform Act adopted in 2010?
Frequently asked questions about Senegalese law
Is Senegal a member of CEMAC?
No. Senegal is a member of WAEMU (West African Economic and Monetary Union), whose CFA franc is issued by the BCEAO, headquartered in Dakar. CEMAC brings together six Central African states, whose CFA franc is issued by a different central bank, the BEAC.
Does OHADA law apply in Senegal?
Yes. Senegal is a founding member of OHADA, whose Treaty was signed in Port Louis in 1993. The Uniform Acts (commercial companies, securities, debt recovery, insolvency, arbitration, general commercial law…) are directly applicable there without transposition, notwithstanding any conflicting provision of domestic law, whether earlier or later (OHADA Treaty, art. 10).
Which court rules in cassation on OHADA law?
The Common Court of Justice and Arbitration (CCJA), based in Abidjan. It rules in cassation on the application of the Uniform Acts, in place of the Supreme Court of Senegal (Treaty, art. 14), and its judgments are enforceable in all member states (art. 20).
What is the status of international treaties in Senegalese law?
Under article 98 of the Constitution of 22 January 2001, duly ratified or approved treaties prevail over statutes once published, provided the other party applies them. A commitment contrary to the Constitution can only be ratified after the Constitution has been amended (art. 97).
Which regional organizations does Senegal belong to?
Senegal is a member of seven organizations: the African Union, the AfCFTA, OHADA, ECOWAS, WAEMU, the OMVS and the OMVG. It is not a member of CEMAC, the WAMZ or the Council of the Entente.
Where does LegOmnia stand on Senegalese law?
Senegal is one of our priority jurisdictions and its integration is under way. We are building coverage step by step: OHADA law, shared by the 17 member states including Senegal, is the foundation, progressively enriched with texts and case law specific to Senegalese law. People on the waitlist will be the first to hear about each new milestone. OmniScan can already be deployed in Senegal today to digitise and index legal document collections.
Senegalese law, soon at your fingertips
Join the waitlist to be among the first to access LegOmnia legal research on Senegal and the OHADA area.
Educational summary; it does not constitute legal advice. References: Constitution of 22 January 2001 (arts. 97 and 98), OHADA Treaty (arts. 10, 14, 20), WAEMU Treaty, AfCFTA Agreement (art. 19). Memberships as of October 2026.
Jurisdiction · West Africa