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Great Green Wall

Regreening Ferlo, Senegal

Putting local pastoralists at the heart of restoration

0 ha
under restoration
0
trees growing
0
species regenerating
0
families benefiting
people trained

Location

Sahelian zone of Senegal

Project partners

Agronomes et Vétérinaires Sans Frontière (AVSF), Pôle Pastoralisme zone sèche (PPZS), ISRA, CIRAD

Restoration approaches

Direct planting, Assisted Natural Regeneration, enrichment planting

Notable species

Sclerocarya birrea, Balanites aegyptiaca, Combretum glutinosum, Acacia seyal, Adansonia digitata, Acacia nilotica

Participants

The communities of Labgar, Younouféré and Vélingara Pastoral Units

At the westerly end of the vision of Africa’s Great Green Wall is the Ferlo zone in the Sahelian region. Desertification here is bringing hunger and drought, driving migration and disrupting education.

WeForest and its partners are putting pastoralist communities at the heart of restoration in an innovative partnership. Phase 1 will see 1000 ha restored using proven restoration techniques and combined with experimental plots to identify and measure improved techniques for consistent survival rates and cost-effective scale-up.

Why and how we're working here

The global Great Green Wall movement was launched in 2007 with the ambition to grow 8000 km of forest across the width of Africa, reversing the spreading desertification that brings hunger and drought, drives migration and disrupts education. Despite over a decade of action, there has been slow progress.

Over the next ten years we aim to restore and regreen 10 000 hectares with local communities at the heart of restoration: identifying restoration zones, managing nurseries and monitoring survival. 15 native species will boost incomes from non-timber forest products and increase the availability of fodder in the long dry season.

By mobilizing the communities, the project addresses the interrelated issues of poverty, food insecurity,
land degradation and biodiversity loss. With its combination of field work and research, the project will also develop a toolbox of best practices across the Sahel to ensure restoration success in the long term.

Read the latest project updates

The project's impact on

people

The project will support increased incomes from non-timber forest products such as fruit and gum, and grass fodder for livestock. The resilience of the pastoral communities here will be strengthened through improved food security.
Ferlo, covering an area of nearly 57,269 km² of the Sahel, occupies nearly a third of the country's surface area, extending from the Senegal river valley to the fringes of the groundnut basin. © Aldi Diasse
Ferlo, covering an area of nearly 57,269 km² of the Sahel, occupies nearly a third of the country's surface area, extending from the Senegal river valley to the fringes of the groundnut basin. © Aldi Diasse
The majority of the vegetation in the "thorny steppe" of the Ferlo area are a few tree species growing in sandy to clayey soils. Sahelian species tend to have shallow root systems which gives them access to groundwater and shallow water tables in this low rainfall area.
The majority of the vegetation in the "thorny steppe" of the Ferlo area are a few tree species growing in sandy to clayey soils. Sahelian species tend to have shallow root systems which gives them access to groundwater and shallow water tables in this low rainfall area.
Ferlo is known for its large nature reserves which served as shields to slow down the advance of the agricultural fronts. The region has seen a steep decline of its fauna which are now limited to a few protected areas.
Ferlo is known for its large nature reserves which served as shields to slow down the advance of the agricultural fronts. The region has seen a steep decline of its fauna which are now limited to a few protected areas.
In the past the people moved with their livestock from one grazing ground to another in a seasonal cycle. However, more and more people settle down more permanently around boreholes, increasing pressure on the natural resources.
In the past the people moved with their livestock from one grazing ground to another in a seasonal cycle. However, more and more people settle down more permanently around boreholes, increasing pressure on the natural resources.
The project will take place in the Labgar, Younouféré and Vélingara Ferlo Pastoral Units (PUs): groupings of camps of about fifteen km in radius which share the same agricultural and pastoral space and the same water points, with converging socio-economic interests. © Aldi Diasse
The project will take place in the Labgar, Younouféré and Vélingara Ferlo Pastoral Units (PUs): groupings of camps of about fifteen km in radius which share the same agricultural and pastoral space and the same water points, with converging socio-economic interests. © Aldi Diasse
Low rainfall areas like this need good methods of capturing and retaining water for planted trees to have a chance to survive. So far, there has been poor progress on restoration in this region. © Aldi Diasse
Low rainfall areas like this need good methods of capturing and retaining water for planted trees to have a chance to survive. So far, there has been poor progress on restoration in this region. © Aldi Diasse
One-month baobab (Adansonia digitata) seedlings in the Dahra nursery. © Aldi Diasse
One-month baobab (Adansonia digitata) seedlings in the Dahra nursery. © Aldi Diasse

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Who's funding the Regreening Ferlo project?

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Updates from the Great Green Wall programme

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Progress reports