Sustainable development of oyster and shellfish farming and beekeeping in the Saloum Delta

Context

This project is part of local efforts to develop income generating activities and preserve natural environments in the Sine Saloum region. The incidence of poverty in the target region (Fatick), of which Saloum occupies a large part, is 46%.

The project supports the development policies of local communities. It helps to reduce the poverty rate among the most vulnerable groups of the population: women and children.

The project’s aims are to:

• Conserve and preserve the Saloum Delta ecosystems and the full extent of their biodiversity
• Improve maternal and infant health for mothers who gather shellfish and their children, who are carried on their backs in the sun for many hours
• Support vocational training for women who gather shellfish
• Promote their socio-economic integration by supporting women’s entrepreneurship

In this line of work, cases of drowning are frequent (36 people drowned in 2017), since the majority of women involved cannot swim and cross bolongs (channels between mangrove swamps) in small, unstable boats or on foot at low tide, returning when the tide begins to rise. The currents in these bolongs are very strong and the channels are deep and muddy, so they cannot be crossed quickly.

The three communes of Dionewar, Toubacouta and Palmarin (approx. 45,000 inhabitants) will benefit indirectly from improved shellfish processing under the project.

The use of environmentally friendly transport and processing resources, the increase in the purchasing power of producers (male and female), leading to the creation of other businesses, the development of transport by traders, etc. will benefit people living in these areas.

In addition, the project is fully in line with several Sustainable Development Goals, notably SDG 1 "No Poverty", SDG 2 "Zero Hunger",  SDG 8 "Decent Work and Economic Growth" and SDG 14 "Life Below Water".

Overall objective 

Support oyster and shellfish farming and beekeeping to enable independent and sustainable management of oyster, shellfish and honey production by women in Sine Saloum economic interest groups.

More broadly, the project seeks to help ensure financial and food security by developing income generating activities on the one hand, and preserving the natural environment on the other, through responsible exploitation of the mangrove swamps.

Specific objectives

• Increase the income of female harvesters by improving conditions for oyster and shellfish farming in Saloum and diversifying their activities
• Preserve natural resources (mangrove ecosystem) while developing oyster and shellfish farming through the establishment of a common charter

Beneficiaries

Direct beneficiaries:
1,975 women within economic interest groups and 35 children placed in nursery (at the beginning of the project, 35 children whose mothers gather shellfish; the number will increase each year).

Indirect beneficiaries:
The families and relatives of these women. The total number of beneficiaries is estimated at almost 20,000.

Anticipated outcomes

• Working and safety conditions for harvesters are improved: 90% reduction in risks for female harvesters, 9 economic interest groups are correctly equipped, cases of childhood drowning are cut by 90%
• The income of female producers increases thanks to the promotion and creation of a marketing network for Saloum produce: 50% increase in the production of oysters, shellfish and honey, 50% increase in family incomes