Senegal River relates the legend that both the Senegal and the Egyptian Nile were branches of the Biblical Gihon River that stems from the Garden of Eden and flows through Ethiopia. He also notes that the Senegal was called "the Niger" by the ancients - probably a reference to Ptolemy's legendary 'Nigir' (Νιγειρ) (below the Gir), which would be later identified by Leo Africanus with the modern Niger River. Much the same story is repeated by Marmol in 1573, with the additional note that both the Senegal River and Gambia River were tributaries of the Niger River. However, the contemporary African atlas
Senegal areas. In Tambacounda in the far interior, particularly on the border of Mali where desert begins, temperatures can reach as high as . The northernmost part of the country has a near hot desert climate, the central part has a hot semi-arid climate and the southernmost part has a tropical wet and dry climate. Senegal is mainly a sunny and dry country. After its economy contracted by 2.1% in 1993, Senegal instituted a major economic reform program with the support of international donors. This reform began with a 50 percent devaluation of the country's currency (the CFA franc). Government price