French West Africa was a federation of eight French colonial territories in West Africa, existing from 1895 to 1960. It covered a land area of about 4.7 million square kilometers and had a population of over 20 million people by the mid-20th century. The federation included modern-day countries such as Senegal, Mali, Ivory Coast, and Burkina Faso, with Dakar as its capital. It played a significant role in France’s colonial empire and issued its own currency and banknotes during its existence.