97.2% of Senegal's population professes Islam, 6% follow traditional religions. Christians make up 2% of the total population. 95% of Muslims belong to Sufi brotherhoods that consider peace and tolerance as important values. The history of Senegal, in fact, is marked by the encounter with different peoples and cultures that have led to a mixture of ethnicities and families. Today it is an example of peaceful coexistence between different religious communities and attention to the other. Relations between Christian and Muslim religious authorities are also characterised by respect and friendship. The openness to welcome Muslims into Catholic schools since the arrival of the first missionaries, as well as having supported an attitude of religious tolerance, may have been the foundations of these peaceful Islamic-Christian relations.
Over the years, Salesian environments, whether schools, training centres or oratories, have become places where Christians and Muslims meet as friends and learn to respect each other's faith and sensitivities. During the meeting with the Salesians, Fr Maravilla encouraged them "to strengthen the activities and initiatives that promote dynamic coexistence between Muslims and Christians in our environments". "This prophecy of dynamic coexistence is a gift of the Salesian presence of Senegal for the entire Congregation and the Salesian Family," he stressed.
During his visit, the General Councillor was accompanied by Fr Jésus-Benôit Badji, Superior of Our Lady of Peace Province in AON.
