The commune of Dakar, whose population approached 1 million inhabitants, was deemed too large and too populous to be properly managed by a central municipality, and so on August 30, 1996 Dakar was divided into 19 communes d'arrondissement.

[citation needed] There are five communes d'arrondissement in Dakar-Plateau: Plateau/Gorée, Médina, Fass-Gueule Tapée-Colobane, Fann Point-E, and Île de Gorée.

[citation needed] The commune d'arrondissement of Plateau/Gorée (34,626 inhabitants), in the arrondissement of Dakar-Plateau, is the historical heart of the city, and most ministries and public administrations are located there.

Since the administrative reforms of 1996, the régions of Senegal, which until then were merely local administrative structures of the central state, have been turned into full-fledged political units, with democratically elected regional councils, and regional presidents.

They were given extensive powers, and manage economic development, transportation, or environmental protection issues at the regional level, thus coordinating the actions of the communes below them.