The Dynamics for an Agroecological Transition in Senegal (DyTAES) organized a series of consultation workshops throughout the country to take an inventory of the Senegalese agricultural sector in order to accompany the government in implementing an agroecological transition process in Senegal. This work was followed by the Agroecology Days and then the Agroecology Night, real moments of sharing and advocacy for an agricultural system based on more sustainable practices.
With Sustainable Access to Healthy and Nutritious Food (ADASN) as one of its priority programs, CICODEV is committed to promoting agroecology at DyTAES. This dynamic was born out of the desire of all civil society organizations and research institutes to contribute their experience and commitment to the same vision having one goal: The implementation of a sustainable agricultural system for an agroecological transition in Senegal, DyTAES, composed of farmers, breeders, fishermen, forest users, citizen-consumers, community organizations, local authorities, non-governmental organizations, researchers and enterprises, has initiated various activities, among which the elaboration of a contribution document to national policies, with strong recommendations for an agroecological transition in the territories of Senegal. The objective is to establish a strategy to support the State for the transition to be successful and the implementation of one of the five major initiatives of the Priority Action Plan of the second phase of the Plan for an Emerging Senegal (PES).
This process has mobilized more than a thousand people, over nearly 5 months, through consultations carried out in the 6 eco-geographical zones of the country; including all stakeholders, from international organizations to grassroots community organizations, including producers, processors, distributors and consumers. A process that resulted in the elaboration of a document presenting 15 major challenges for the Senegalese agricultural sector and policy recommendations in favor of the Agroecological Transition, with expected results in the short, medium and long term.
Of these recommendations, DyTAES has retained 3 immediate ones:
1) To set up a national framework for dialogue bringing together all the actors for the TAE,
2) To encourage and financially support experiments involving the implementation of coordinated and simultaneous changes in several sectors of activity (education, agriculture, food, energy, housing, forestry…) at the level of communes or departments in order to implement a territorial plan,
3) To identify priorities that can have a leverage effect for the TAE and to valorize them in the experiments.
This document and its recommendations are the first step of a long journey with the State, within the framework of a multi-actor political dialogue to which DyTAES calls in order to create a decisive national start for an irreversible agroecological transition.
Khady Thiané Ndoye
Project manager ADASN