Resilience matters — it helps village communities withstand climate change. A case study from Senegal, told by the Africa projects coordinator at Green Cross.
When they land in Dakar, tourists think they have arrived in Africa. With its dusty streets, honking cars and colourful market fragrant with spices, Senegal's capital bears no resemblance to the rest of the country — to the poor, underdeveloped areas from which men flee in search of fortune while women stay behind, struggling to feed their children. This is where we at Green Cross have chosen to focus our efforts. Here, on the border with Mauritania, in sun-scorched lands that cannot hold back the advance of the desert. What we are trying to do is simple yet complex at the same time: strengthen the resilience of village communities — that is, their capacity to withstand climate change, to cope with the difficulties caused by depopulation, and to increase the productivity of the land.
How? We are investing in the development of renewable energy, in the rational management of water, and in the improvement of agricultural techniques. And we entrust women with positions of responsibility. Aisha, Amina and Nadira lead some of the economic interest groups that are driving this small but significant revolution — women who are stubbornly working to change the fortunes of their families and communities. Literacy courses, through which they have learned to read and write, and seminars on production and marketing systems are aimed at them and at other young and elderly women alike. Here, in the Matam region, life is not easy. And yet where there were once barely productive fields, carrots, cabbages, aubergines and chillies now grow. Here, 166 solar panels pump water across 37 hectares of land.
Through the project Creation emplois dans l'agriculture (Creation of employment opportunities in agriculture), launched in partnership with the association Progetto diritti and the research and study centre Idos, and funded by the Ministry of the Interior, in addition to promoting the right to remain in one's own country, we also give those who have emigrated the opportunity to return home and live with dignity: Green Cross provides guidance, advice and information, and verifies that the return plan is coherent and has a realistic chance of success. In this way, we help turn the dream of many migrants into reality.