France had a better plan of colonizing Africa than they did leaving it. Almost the entire region of West Africa was controlled by France at its height, and by the middle of the 20th century most of it reverted to independent control as the French Sudan. When Senegal joined the multinational cooperative, it became known as the Mali Federation, but only lasted ten years before Senegal seceded.

On this day, August 20, in 1960, due to internal political disagreements with the Mali Federation, Senegal declared its own independence. The rest of the Mali Federation changed its name to the Republic of Mali.

Unlike many of its African neighbors, Senegal retained its democratic government and remained relatively peaceful. One coup was attempted, and foiled, in the 1960s, and the country has had two peaceful transfers of powers, with free and fair elections monitored by the international community.