REDUCING PROVERTY THROUGH SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
The Wula Nafaa project, which means “Benefits from the Forest” in Wolof, has created businesses around several tree based value chains including honey, palm oil, baobab, karaya gum, cashew, and charcoal. This USAID-funded project in Senegal was initiated with the ultimate goal of improving household incomes. With the increase in wealth, participants realize the incentives inherent in the sound management of natural resources.
The program is composed of two major components concerned with:
- The development of sustainable small and medium-sized enterprises
- The empowerment of local producer groups and rural communities, the clarification of their rights and responsibilities, and the strengthening of their role in decentralized NRM
NCBA/CLUSA provides technical assistance to rural enterprises and group businesses in several key areas including: facilitating market access for products; organizing producers into groups and cooperatives; improving literacy; business skills training; and facilitating access to credit. NCBA/CLUSA also assists in the development of nationally mandated management plans and community recognized local conventions. NCBA/CLUSA supports these plans through training on forest monitoring techniques, understanding of local and national forest codes and conflict resolution.
CHARCOAL: SUSTAINABLE AND PROFITABLE
Charcoal is one of the most lucrative forest-based activities in the Tambacounda region of Senegal.
In the Community Forest of Koulor, NCBA/CLUSA organized 306 charcoal producers into 17 producer groups and conducted technical exchange visits with experienced producers in other regions of Senegal.
NCBA/CLUSA taught the producers how to use the Casamance Kiln, which increases production by as much as 70%, making charcoal production more sustainable and profitable. Participants in the training marketed 200 sacks of charcoal in just a day and made enough profit to return 25% of the proceeds to the local NRM Committee to help fund the implementation of the local NRM management plan.
For Tambacounda residents, revenues from the charcoal can greatly contribute to poverty reduction and ensure sustainable forest management.
According to Moussa Diop from the village of Ndiobene:
“Wula Nafaa staff have taught us not only how to make money making charcoal, but they have taught us how to make it without destroying the forest.”
