Senegal is a predominately Muslim country and a lot of the kids here attend koranic schools where they memorize the verses of the Koran. This past Sunday a group of students from the local school came over to our house and spent the afternoon reciting verses to raise money for their school. They recited 1000 (yes, three zeros) verses from the koran over the course of several hours. Here is a short video I made from the visit.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Driving Along
Video taken out of the back of an SUV driving on my way to a meeting out in the bush. Wolof in the background.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Friday, March 6, 2009
A Day at the Beach
A Pet Pelican at a hotel we visited
An image of one of the most important spiritual leaders in Senegal which can be found in various forms around the country
Monday, February 16, 2009
Photos Update
UPDATE: When I try to open the page in Firefox the photos are coming up cropped on the right (there should be a third person in the bottom photo). Does anyone know how to resolve this?
The courtyard of my school
On the beach at Dakar with some people from my program
The courtyard of my school
On the beach at Dakar with some people from my program
Photos
The availability/speed of the Internet here makes it very difficult to upload photos. I'm trying my hardest to make to happen but am, as of yet, unsuccessful. Thanks for the patience.
Toubacouta
My program returned on Sunday from a weekend excursion out of the city to a region of Senegal called Toubacouta. This area is known as Little Casamance and is located just above the Gambia on the coast. The trip was a literal breath of fresh air from the hazy pollution that constantly hangs over Dakar. There is a bitter cloud of exhaust generated by the city's traffic and the only brief respite possible is found along the coast. Like many countries in Africa Senegal is seeing a huge movement towards urbanization. People unable to find a livelihood in the rural sector have inflated the urban population either permanently or on a seasonal basis when the dry season leaves many villages unable to support their populations. The result has been rapid unplanned growth in the city and a demographics problem in the villages.
The village of Toubacouda is a tourist destination for hunting and fishing that is located on the coast. Only 2% of land in Senegal is privately owned. The rest of the country is under various levels of national and regional government control. This fact has interesting implications in terms of environmental regulation and control. Senegal has 31.7% of its surface area designated as "Classé" which effectively means national parks that are completely protected from exploitation. The remainder of the public land (remember only 2% of the land is private property, mostly in the cities or coast) is either under state administration (waterways, railroads etc.) or designated "Protégé" and managed in conjunction with the decentralized local authorities for use by villages etc. Toubacouta is home to a fish and migratory bird reservation. The park is designed to protect the delicate coastal ecosystems that are used for reproduction by migratory birds from around the world and fish populations along the west coast. Visiting the park was a complete 180 degree change from the hustle and pollution of Dakar. We rode the local canoes equipped with outboard motors from the shore by our hotel [1] into the reservation.
The quiet of the reservation is its most striking feature. The green of the mangroves is vivid against the calm water of the estuaries and the dry stretches of salted sand that remain when the tide recedes. There are groups of fish visible in the water along the shore and as the sun set the sound of crickets was the only sound. They have had impressive results at the reservation including the re-appearance of several fish species and grow back of the mangrove ecosystem.
The experience of the reservation was put in stark relief by our visit to the National Center for Fishing. Like most of the world the fishing industry in Senegal is suffering from the dismal condition of the world fish stocks. Overfishing, pollution and destructive fishing methods everywhere have made it harder and harder for fishermen in Senegal to make a living. The National Center for Fishing was created in cooperation with the Japanese government[2] to promote artisan fishing. This means that they protect the waters off the coast of Senegal and license only Senegalese fishermen to practice "traditional" fishing. The measures have been effective in managing the level of artisan fishing happening in Senegal but it also has created several problems.
Artisan fishing suffers from the worldwide depletion of fisheries much more than it contributes to it. The artisan fishing industry and its complementary industries (fish sellers, boat builders, net repairers, fish driers etc.) are unable to provide reliable livings to its participant because fishing stocks are limited and difficult exploit. When we visited the NCF their facilities were barely being used. Out of maybe 40 racks used for drying fish only about 2 and a half were in use when we visited. This situation has created several problems in the community. First, many local farmers rely on fishing to compensate during years with bad agricultural yields. The new scheme for licensing and controlling fishing, however, makes it hard for these seasonal fishers to enter and exit in the way that they are accustomed to. This has created resentment for the system and prevented some of the community from having access to a resource they had traditionally used to feed their families.
Second, the difficulty of fishing has drawn the NCF into the problem of illegal immigration. One of the services that the center provides is loan the upfront cost of fishing trips to members of the local community so that they can participate in fishing. In practical terms this means loaning boats, fuel, supplies etc. to local crews that want to go out and fish. With the reduced availability of fish the artisan fishers have been going farther and farther out to try and find catch. Many of these young fishers decide that it is a better option to just continue traveling and try to sneak into Spain. This type of illegal immigration has had particular affect on the population of Toubacouta because the resources of the center has enticed dozens and dozens of young men to risk the dangerous journey to Spain in small fishing boats leaving a demographic problem in their community and facing the difficult life of an illegal immigrant in Spain. Many young men have died trying to make the trip to Spain and the villages are feeling the strain of having all their young men leave for Spain. This situation has put the NCF into the center of the problem of illegal immigration in a very interesting way as it struggles to serve the interests of the community.
Continued in Part II
Footnotes:
1. Our hotel is used by tourist hunters (that's tourists that hunt and not people that hunt tourists) when it is in season and owned by a group of Belgians. Like most of the hotels in Toubacouta and elsewhere it is owned by foreigners.
2. I have heard conflicting reports on the relationship that exists between the Japanese and Senegalese governments when it comes to fishing. The director of the NCF told us that the money for the Center was a donation given without condition but it is also true that Japan and other foreign governments have negotiated advantageous industrial fishing permits of the coast of Senegal. These permits allow the sort of destructive industrial practices that are largely to blame for the disastrous condition of world fish stocks. Deep water nets that are kilometers long and so fine that even the smallest fish are caught to be merely thrown back, dead, into the sea where they pollute the water and can never mature into a edible/reproductive generation.
The village of Toubacouda is a tourist destination for hunting and fishing that is located on the coast. Only 2% of land in Senegal is privately owned. The rest of the country is under various levels of national and regional government control. This fact has interesting implications in terms of environmental regulation and control. Senegal has 31.7% of its surface area designated as "Classé" which effectively means national parks that are completely protected from exploitation. The remainder of the public land (remember only 2% of the land is private property, mostly in the cities or coast) is either under state administration (waterways, railroads etc.) or designated "Protégé" and managed in conjunction with the decentralized local authorities for use by villages etc. Toubacouta is home to a fish and migratory bird reservation. The park is designed to protect the delicate coastal ecosystems that are used for reproduction by migratory birds from around the world and fish populations along the west coast. Visiting the park was a complete 180 degree change from the hustle and pollution of Dakar. We rode the local canoes equipped with outboard motors from the shore by our hotel [1] into the reservation.
The quiet of the reservation is its most striking feature. The green of the mangroves is vivid against the calm water of the estuaries and the dry stretches of salted sand that remain when the tide recedes. There are groups of fish visible in the water along the shore and as the sun set the sound of crickets was the only sound. They have had impressive results at the reservation including the re-appearance of several fish species and grow back of the mangrove ecosystem.
The experience of the reservation was put in stark relief by our visit to the National Center for Fishing. Like most of the world the fishing industry in Senegal is suffering from the dismal condition of the world fish stocks. Overfishing, pollution and destructive fishing methods everywhere have made it harder and harder for fishermen in Senegal to make a living. The National Center for Fishing was created in cooperation with the Japanese government[2] to promote artisan fishing. This means that they protect the waters off the coast of Senegal and license only Senegalese fishermen to practice "traditional" fishing. The measures have been effective in managing the level of artisan fishing happening in Senegal but it also has created several problems.
Artisan fishing suffers from the worldwide depletion of fisheries much more than it contributes to it. The artisan fishing industry and its complementary industries (fish sellers, boat builders, net repairers, fish driers etc.) are unable to provide reliable livings to its participant because fishing stocks are limited and difficult exploit. When we visited the NCF their facilities were barely being used. Out of maybe 40 racks used for drying fish only about 2 and a half were in use when we visited. This situation has created several problems in the community. First, many local farmers rely on fishing to compensate during years with bad agricultural yields. The new scheme for licensing and controlling fishing, however, makes it hard for these seasonal fishers to enter and exit in the way that they are accustomed to. This has created resentment for the system and prevented some of the community from having access to a resource they had traditionally used to feed their families.
Second, the difficulty of fishing has drawn the NCF into the problem of illegal immigration. One of the services that the center provides is loan the upfront cost of fishing trips to members of the local community so that they can participate in fishing. In practical terms this means loaning boats, fuel, supplies etc. to local crews that want to go out and fish. With the reduced availability of fish the artisan fishers have been going farther and farther out to try and find catch. Many of these young fishers decide that it is a better option to just continue traveling and try to sneak into Spain. This type of illegal immigration has had particular affect on the population of Toubacouta because the resources of the center has enticed dozens and dozens of young men to risk the dangerous journey to Spain in small fishing boats leaving a demographic problem in their community and facing the difficult life of an illegal immigrant in Spain. Many young men have died trying to make the trip to Spain and the villages are feeling the strain of having all their young men leave for Spain. This situation has put the NCF into the center of the problem of illegal immigration in a very interesting way as it struggles to serve the interests of the community.
Continued in Part II
Footnotes:
1. Our hotel is used by tourist hunters (that's tourists that hunt and not people that hunt tourists) when it is in season and owned by a group of Belgians. Like most of the hotels in Toubacouta and elsewhere it is owned by foreigners.
2. I have heard conflicting reports on the relationship that exists between the Japanese and Senegalese governments when it comes to fishing. The director of the NCF told us that the money for the Center was a donation given without condition but it is also true that Japan and other foreign governments have negotiated advantageous industrial fishing permits of the coast of Senegal. These permits allow the sort of destructive industrial practices that are largely to blame for the disastrous condition of world fish stocks. Deep water nets that are kilometers long and so fine that even the smallest fish are caught to be merely thrown back, dead, into the sea where they pollute the water and can never mature into a edible/reproductive generation.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Monday, January 19, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Saturday, January 3, 2009
The Dark Continent
These links come from Chris Blattman's blog. The text is a satirical take on the way that Africa is written about and represented and the video is from the author,Binyavanga Wainaina, explaining why he wrote the piece. Its all very interesting.
How to Write about Africa
How to Write about Africa
Perspective
I've decided to create this blog as a public record of my experiences and impressions while studying abroad next semester in Dakar. It will not a be a personal journal of funny anecdotes and grinning snapshots (though no promises can be made). It is rather a gathering place for comments, information and analysis related to my work there. I hope that everyone who visits will enjoy and make liberal use of the comments to share their perspective. Lets begin.
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