Black Muslim Psychology Conference [BMPC]
Know Before You Go
Preparing for Senegal
Essential travel information to help you arrive informed, prepared, and ready for the journey ahead.
Traveling to Senegal for BMPC2026 is an opportunity to experience a country rich in history, cultural traditions, Islamic scholarship, and contemporary West African life. Whether this is your first visit to Senegal, your first journey to the African continent, or a return to a familiar destination, thoughtful preparation can help you navigate your travels with greater confidence and ease.
As you prepare for BMPC2026: Rasikh — What We Carry Forward, there are several important considerations - from passport requirements and travel health guidance to currency, banking, insurance, and everyday practicalities - understanding what to expect before departure can make your arrival and stay in Dakar more manageable.
Check out these quick tips:
Senegal At A Glance!
Essential Travel Considerations
Our Know Before You Go guide highlights several areas to review as you finalize your plans:
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Passports & Entry Requirements:
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Confirm that your passport meets Senegal's entry requirements and determine whether a visa is required based on your nationality. U.S. passport holders traveling for short visits generally do not require a visa, but all travelers should verify current entry requirements before departure.
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Travel Health & Vaccinations:
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Review recommended vaccinations, health precautions, and any requirements associated with your travel itinerary. Yellow fever documentation requirements may differ depending on the countries through which you travel.
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Currency & Everyday Expenses:
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Senegal uses the West African CFA franc (XOF). While credit cards are accepted at many larger hotels and establishments, cash remains important for taxis, smaller purchases, and everyday transactions. Planning how you will access local currency can help minimize unnecessary fees and inconvenience.
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Banking & International Payments:
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Review your bank's international withdrawal and foreign transaction fees, confirm your cards can be used abroad, and consider using payment methods that minimize currency conversion costs.
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Travel Insurance:
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Consider travel insurance that provides appropriate protection for flight disruptions, lost luggage, medical emergencies, and unexpected changes to your itinerary.
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Time Zone & Communication:
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Dakar operates on Greenwich Mean Time (GMT/UTC+0). Check the time difference with your home location and consider your options for mobile data, international calling, and staying connected during your visit.
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Planning for a Comfortable Arrival
We encourage BMPC2026 attendees to arrive in Dakar by December 15 or 16, whenever possible, to allow time to rest, adjust, and settle in before conference programming begins on Thursday, December 17. Be sure to review the program overview for further details.
Remember that conference registration covers designated BMPC2026 activities, but attendees are generally responsible for arranging and paying for their own international travel, accommodations, airport transfers, and personal transportation outside the official program.
Taking care of these details in advance will allow you to focus more fully on the relationships, conversations, and experiences that await you in Senegal.
Traveling with Awareness & Respect
Preparation also extends beyond practical arrangements. Senegal is a living, culturally diverse society with its own languages, religious traditions, social customs, and everyday rhythms.
As visitors, we encourage participants to approach their encounters with humility, curiosity, patience, and respect. This is especially important as we prepare to spend time on Gorée Island—a place of profound historical significance that is also home to a contemporary Senegalese community.
Our hope is that you will arrive not only with the necessary travel information, but also with an openness to learning from the people, places, and experiences that make this journey meaningful.
Need more assistance?
A little preparation can go a long way. We look forward to welcoming you to Senegal!
Please note: Travel information is provided as general guidance and may change. Attendees should confirm current entry requirements, health recommendations, transportation arrangements, and other relevant details through appropriate official sources before departure.
For attendees who would appreciate additional support, Aidah Z. Muhammad, BMPC2026 Official Travel Guide and Founder of Touchdown Experiential & Hospitality Group, is available for personalized travel consultations to help you develop a practical plan for your journey. Bring your half-made plans — flights you're weighing, questions about where to stay, what December in Dakar will actually cost you. You'll leave with a plan and written notes to book from. One (1) hour sessions run virtually through November 17. Availability is limited. Schedule a consultation through the links below.
As a flagship initiative of Muslim Wellness Foundation’s Omar ibn Said Institute for Black Muslim Studies & Research, BMPC advances Black Muslim Psychology as an interdisciplinary field of inquiry, practice, and community-rooted knowledge production that centers the lived experiences, strengths, spiritual lives, racial identities, cultural traditions, and psychological well-being of people who identify as both Muslim and of Black/African descent. We seek to understand how Black Muslims make meaning, cultivate belonging, develop healthy racial and religious identities, heal from trauma, resist oppression, and build lives rooted in dignity, faith, joy, and self-determination.
Lastly, Black Muslim Psychology insists that Black Muslim life cannot be understood through suffering and deficit-based frameworks alone. We reject narratives which only ask:
"What harms Black Muslims?"
and ignore deeper, more fundamental questions such as:
"What sustains Black Muslims? What wisdom do Black Muslim communities carry? What forms of healing, leadership, and liberation emerge from Black Muslim life?”
Developed and advanced by Muslim Wellness Foundation since 2015, Black Muslim Psychology responds to a long-standing gap in psychology, counseling, public health, religious studies, and Muslim community life: the failure to adequately understand Black Muslims on their own terms.
US Based & Global North Rate
For attendees based in the United States and other Global North countries including Canada, the United Kingdom, Western and Northern European countries, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and South Korea. This rate provides personalized, one-on-one travel planning support, including guidance on flights, accommodations, local transportation, travel readiness, and preparing for your journey to Senegal. Attendees who are currently students may select the reduced rate of $75 USD. Sessions run virtually through November 17. Availability is limited. Book today!
*Consultation fees cover travel planning guidance only. Travel bookings, accommodations, transportation, and other travel expenses are not included.
$125.00 USD
Student & Global South Rate
For attendees based in Global South countries, including those in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and much of Asia, as well as students at any level of study, regardless of country of residence. This rate provides personalized, one-on-one travel planning support, including guidance on flights, accommodations, local transportation, travel readiness, and preparing for your journey to Senegal. This reduced rate is intended to reduce financial barriers for students, including doctoral candidates, and participants traveling from regions where international travel costs may represent a greater financial burden.
*Consultation fees cover travel planning guidance only. Travel bookings, accommodations, transportation, and other travel expenses are not included.
$75.00 USD
Prepare
for the Journey
BMPC2026: Rasikh — What We Carry Forward
December 17–19, 2026
Dakar + Gorée Island, Senegal
BMPC2026 is an invitation to remember truthfully, reconnect responsibly, and reclaim futures rooted in dignity, faith, healing, and collective care. As we gather in Dakar and on Gorée Island, we do not come seeking symbolic return alone. We come to honor memory, build relationship, and deepen our shared responsibility to the past, present, and future of Black Muslim life.