86. In the area of social protection, the strategy adopted by the Senegalese authorities to improve social security systems, to prevent major risks and disasters and to ensure better protection of vulnerable social groups, as we shall see much later, is confronted with natural structural limitations such as the shortness of cultivation seasons in most of the agricultural zones, which situation reduces opportunities for employment. In addition to this, there is also a high level of inactivity (39%) which increases the rate of economic dependence as well as low labour productivity in the informal sector which is the key economic sector, and inadequate vocational training. All these constitute barriers to the alleviation of vulnerability and poverty in the country. 87. In rural communities, the rural- urban exodus of the youth and active women is obviously a clear sign of the shortfall of productive employment. In the urban areas, the training offered is not adapted to the job market. It is particularly high among young graduates and this phenomenon has very serious social consequences especially it creates tensions on the job market. Women are in the majority in this case (52% of the overall population) and they account for 65% of the active population. 88. In the rural areas, women are mainly engaged in agriculture, livestock farming and fishing. They often carry out 82.6% of their activities by using rudimentary tools as against 79.4% by men. In the urban communities, women consider the informal sector as a suitable alternative since it requires less skills and specialization and furthermore, it is more flexible and more adapted to their financial capacities and their schedule of activities. Generally, vocational training levels are low and limited, thus leading partly to the expansion of the informal sector. 89. Moreover, the gender inequality index which was 0.566 in 2011, translates the persistence of wide social disparities between men and women in Senegal. The disparities between regions are related to access to basic infrastructure: drinking water and sanitation, transport infrastructure, storage, preservation and processing of local products, electricity and hydro-agricultural development. These factors are seen as major sources of inequality and inefficiency in the contribution to economic growth. 90. According to provisional results of the second survey on poverty conducted in 2010-2011 in Senegal, the rate of poverty reduction has grown positively. The proportion of individuals living below the poverty line reduced from 55.2% to 48.3% in 2005 before sliding down to 46.7% in 2011. In 2005 and 2011, it reduced slightly in Dakar and in the rural communities but it stabilized in the other urban centres. 91. In 2011, the regions of Kolda (76.6%), Kédougou (71.3%), Sédhiou (68.3%), Fatick (67.8%) and Ziguinchor (66.8%) had the highest levels of poverty. Moreover, the incidence of monetary poverty was 34.7% among persons living 21