SOS SAHEL - Awareness campaign
In support of the initiative of the UNEP "Plant for the planet : the billion tree campaign ", SOS SAHEL mobilized about ten french celebrities (Olivia Adriaco, Katoucha, Viktor Lazlo, Riké and Mike des Sinsémilia) from the 25th to the 28th of October 2007 in the region of Louga, in Senegal, to plant trees in a zone threatened by desertification. The objective is double :- Discover how much the Sahelians dedicate themselves to the restoration of the vegetable cover on a daily basis ;
- Understand the stakes of desertification, and share their experience with others when they return to France.
A symbolic act in support of the cause of the Sahelians.
SOS SAHEL International France, 30 years of fight against the desertification
Between 10 and 15 projects a year are implemented by SOS SAHEL in the Sahel region, carried by local population and generally containing several sectors such as : access to water, access to the health, environmental protection, economic and agricultural development, various trainings. This year, 393 000 trees were planted in Sahel thanks to the motivation of locally organized groups and villagers in rural areas in Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Mauritania.
Focus : Project of Restoration of the environment and Promotion of a durable agricultural production in Sénégal, for an improvement of the living conditions of the farmers and their family.
70 % of the labor force in Senegal works in the agricultural sector . The zone of the Niayes, which represents the strip of land situated along the coast between Dakar and Saint Louis, produces the majority of the country’s production in fruits and vegetables. This potential is threatened by the sandbank in that area, due to the movement of dunes and to the distance and the salinization of the groundwater.
A forest strip of filao trees was gradually planted from the end of the 40s to the 80s to fix oceanic dunes and to protect the soils from sea winds and the sandbank . Today, this plantation forms a green belt along the north coast of Senegal (Niayes area) which extends over 182 km and over an approximate width of 200-500m. It becomes essential to protect this fragile ecosystem.
The activities implemented by SOS SAHEL should the least allow locals to maintain their level of wage but aim to increase their income in the area concerned by the project..
Since June 2006, date of the launching of the project in the zone, 6 new tree nurseries were built and equipped; 120 people were formed to the techniques of production of young plants, and production in tree nurseries began : 155,512 young plants were produced in total and 48 hectares were reforested up to date.
By the end of the project planned over 3 years time,
- 9 tree nurseries will be functional, each one equipped with a well, and will be producing 50 000 plants annually;
- At least 180 hectares of filaos will be regenerated thanks to the plantation of 300 000 trees ;
- At least 16 hectares of dunes should be stabilized ;
- 150 market gardeners will be able to reforest spaces threatened by desertification ;
- At least 200 women will be able to use enhanced stoves, a homemade clay stove designed to reduce firewood consumption by 50% in comparison to the the traditional stove.
For more information, visit the SOS SAHEL Website .