The Saloum Delta: World Heritage and Biodiversity Sanctuary

Luca Iotti . 14/09/2024 . Reading time: 7 minutes

Sites recognized as World Heritage by UNESCO represent some of the most valuable treasures of our planet. These locations are selected for their exceptional cultural, natural, or mixed value, contributing to our understanding and appreciation of the world’s diversity. Their inclusion on the UNESCO list highlights their universal importance and the need to protect them for future generations. Preserving these sites is essential for maintaining our shared heritage and promoting intercultural understanding, thereby supporting a more sustainable and harmonious future.

The Saloum Delta Biosphere Reserve (RBDS) is located in the center-west of Senegal, between the town of Joal-Fadiouth to the north, the Republic of The Gambia to the south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. It is situated in the watershed of the Saloum River, which consists of two main branches: the Diomboss and the Bandiala. This area functions as a reverse estuary, with a low supply of freshwater from the Saloum River. In these channels, seawater mixes with river water, and climate change is disrupting the normal water cycle, creating serious survival challenges for both the local populations and species. This delta, formed by islets, has channels lined with mangroves. Besides the marine zone, the RBDS also includes a continental part occupied by dry forests, savannas, and agricultural lands. The reserve covers an estimated area of 334,000 hectares, of which 60,000 hectares are mangroves. It consists of two main entities: the marine domain and the mainland. The maritime zone is characterized by the presence of mangroves and sandy coasts. In the valleys, halomorphic soils (tannes) and mud are found in the mangrove zone. On the mainland, the vegetation is mainly dominated by savanna, especially in the protected areas. In the valleys, there are generally degraded gallery forests. The flora of the Reserve consists of at least 188 species, representing 9% of Senegal’s woody and herbaceous plant species. Eleven sites were declared Classified Forests in the 1930s, due to their biological importance. A census has recorded 36 species of wild mammals, 114 fish species, and over 200 bird species. The RBDS population belongs to two main ethnic groups: the Sérères and the Mandinka. The population is estimated at around one million inhabitants. The local economy is primarily based on activities related to natural resources, such as agriculture (which employs about 90% of the population), fishing, livestock farming (developed in the mainland part of the reserve), forest product harvesting (which exerts pressure on the forests), tourism, salt extraction, shellfish exploitation, and hunting (affected by the reduction of wildlife). The predominance of certain activities depends on ethnicity and gender relations.

The RBDS, a wetland of international importance or Ramsar site, as well as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, includes several entities with special legal status:

  • The Saloum Delta National Park (PNDS);
  • Classified Forests (Bétenti Islands, Saloum Islands, Keur Sambel, Vélor, Patako East and Patako South, Baria, Saboya, Sokone, Sangako, Djilor);
  • Community Nature Reserves (Missira, Néma Bah, Massarinko, Samé, Touba Baria, Ndinderling Palmarin, and Mbowen);
  • Marine Protected Areas (Bamboung, Gandoul, Sangomar).
The RBDS also represents an economic hub with a high concentration of human activity, where numerous socio-economic activities, including agriculture, fishing, livestock farming, and harvesting, take place. Senegal has supported the creation of community conservation initiatives, which have led to the establishment of 17 Community Marine Protected Areas since 2012. This has improved the preservation rate of marine and coastal areas, in line with the recent Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (2022-2030), which set the goal of “ensuring that by 2030 at least 30% of terrestrial, inland water, coastal, and marine areas are conserved.” The environmental intervention site we refer to is the BAMBOUNG COMMUNITY MARINE PROTECTED AREA. The Bamboung Community Marine Area, located in the heart of the Saloum Delta Biosphere Reserve, covers an area of 7,000 hectares and includes parts of the Bamboung, Bandiala, and Diomboss waterways. The Bolong is a saltwater channel typical of coastal areas near estuaries. The mangrove stretches along the shores of the entire area of the AMP, covering more than half of its total surface area. The ecosystem of the Bamboung AMCP includes around twenty shell mounds, thousands of piles of bivalve and gastropod shells, which are archaeological remains, evidence of activity in the delta dating back more than 2,000 years. These remnants of consumption were also reused by ancient fishermen-collectors as construction elements for necropolises and burial mounds. The area is home to 154 plant species, nine main types of habitats and plant formations, 77 fish species, 220 bird species, 16 reptile species, 3 amphibian species, 8 mollusk species, and 53 insect species. The mangrove ecosystem, plant formations capable of absorbing up to four times more carbon dioxide per area than terrestrial mountain forests, determines the entire environmental system of this AMCP. The loss of mangroves would lead to the disappearance of the entire habitat. Mangroves serve as a natural barrier against flooding in villages. Rising waters endanger the survival of these villages. Without the natural barrier of the mangroves, they would be submerged by water and sand. The area is a breeding ground for fish species, providing income for fishermen from border areas and improving the food quality and quantity for village populations. It is also the natural habitat for oysters, a source of income for women. Mangroves are a precious asset for humanity, and their protection should concern us all. The uniqueness of Bamboung’s AMP lies in its “community” nature, with a management approach based on active partnership between the State (Community Marine Area Management Directorate), which provides advice, administrative and technical facilitation, monitoring, etc., and the local communities, who benefit from the economic and social impacts, along with supporting partners who provide financial and technical assistance. This synergistic approach, which directly involves populations in managing natural resources and safeguarding the environment, is outlined in a five-year programmatic document. The Ministry of Environment’s “Plan de Aménagement et de Gestion de l’Aire Marine Communautaire Protégée” (Management and Development Plan of the Community Marine Protected Area) guides all project interventions in the Bamboung area. The management of the Bamboung Community Marine Protected Area (AMCPB) and the village management committee have been and will continue to be key partners in designing and implementing projects.

Thirteen coastal villages are located within the AMCPB, all part of the Toubacouta municipality (Fatick region, Foundiougne department). The population is young (over 60% of the population is under 18 years old), and the sectors of agriculture and fishing are the pillars of the local economy, which has an unemployment rate of over 35%. The creation of the AMPC has allowed for greater and better conservation of forest ecosystems, which remains vulnerable to the effects of climate change (salinization, coastal erosion, and silting) and is subjected to various anthropogenic pressures (illegal logging, improper exploitation techniques, overexploitation of fish resources). Since 2003, the AMCPB has been excluded from any form of fishing exploitation. These restrictive measures applied to the area have directly impacted the sustainability of local communities, who must transform their activities into sustainable income-generating activities linked to surveillance, fish stock conservation, mangrove restoration through reforestation and monitoring, biodiversity monitoring, and support for scientific research and ecotourism. These activities are not yet a sufficient and sustainable source of income, as they largely depend on financial investments from external and private partners. Only the small team of AMP staff is remunerated by the State. The 30 eco-guards, 13 of whom are women, are from the villages located within the AMCP and are divided into three groups. To ensure proper protection of the AMP, the agents and community rangers stay seven days a week at the Bamboung watchtower to patrol the entire area, on a voluntary basis. The promotion of ecotourism, the development of horticulture, beekeeping, poultry farming, and aquaculture, as well as the creation of a supply chain for local products, can contribute to increasing the income of local populations and ensure sustainable community management, a strengthened product chain, trade organization, and a growing supply. Bambini nel Deserto and its partners aim to support conservation and ecosystem rehabilitation activities, as well as promote income-generating activities for local communities to ensure the self-financing of the AMCP, which is responsible for ecosystems that are the heritage of all humanity. For this purpose, we have planted 5 hectares of mangroves, supported 10 family poultry farms for personnel most involved in safeguarding the area, and contributed to the construction of a storage facility for the AMP Directorate for storing canoe engines and surveillance equipment.

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