A border river
It is in the mountains of Fouta-Djalon, in Guinea-Conakry, that the Bafing and Bakoye rivers have their sources before joining near Baloufabé, in Mali, about 900 km from the Atlantic Ocean. There, the Senegal River is formed and continues its journey until it crosses its most important tributary, the Falémé, 30 km upstream from Bakel, which is born 650 km away in the northern part of Fouta-Djalon. The river then marks the border between Senegal and Mauritania up to the Diama dam, near Saint-Louis. Between the Diéri, a dry area suitable for livestock farming, and the Walo, a flooded area with fertile land, many Fulani, Wolof and Moorish villages have developed. In some cases, Senegalese and Mauritanian villages face each other, separated only by a few meters by the Senegal River. These residents often share cultural traits, forge ties and sometimes even feel as much Mauritanian as Senegalese. Like Rosso and its Mauritanian namesake, there are many commercial exchanges between its twin cities, from everyday products to electronic equipment of all kinds, which are highly prized by the Senegalese, who benefit from the prices. Thus, throughout the day, dugout canoes and motorized ferries are constantly going back and forth, carrying goods, passengers and vehicles. Second gateway to Senegal after Blaise Diagne airport, Rosso will soon be equipped with a bridge linking the two banks, in order to facilitate free movement and trade between the two countries. However, despite the good understanding that seems to reign, the river has also been a source of conflict between the two countries. In 1989, violent clashes broke out between Senegalese and Mauritanian farmers, who saw their living conditions impoverished as a result of dams built on the Senegal River. Diplomatic relations were broken off and the Senegalese-Mauritanian border was closed until May 1992.
A river with a glorious past
From the 17th century onwards, all eyes were on Saint-Louis, which was then home to a commercial port of great importance, notably for the slave trade, gold and gum arabic. The Senegal River, navigable in all seasons as far as Podor, and during the winter months as far as Kayes, in Mali, allowed for the development of a flourishing trade inland, thus opening up several villages. At the beginning of the 19th century, the gum trade intensified, attracting many French traders, notably from Bordeaux and Marseille, who built warehouses along the quays where goods were stored and traded. Richard Toll, Dagana, Podor, Matam and Bakel thus became essential river ports of call and important commercial centers. However, at the end of the 19th century, the peanut trade gradually replaced the gum arabic trade and developed in Dakar and Rufisque, closer to the production centers. This prosperous trade then tended to decline, just as the capital of West Africa, until then Saint-Louis, was transferred to Dakar in 1902. River transport was reduced to people and mail, forgetting its prestigious past of trade. In 1935, the Messageries du Sénégal were created, which then held a monopoly on traffic on the river. To challenge this specific navigation, the Bou el Mogdad was designed in the Dutch shipyards, a 52-meter long ship with an excellent steel hull. From the 1950s onwards, the boat travelled the river from Saint-Louis to Kayes in Mali, passing through Richard Toll, Podor and Bakel, and became one of the main means of transport and communication between the most remote villages in northern Senegal, as the country had no roads at that time. When it arrived in the trading posts, a whole population was agitated and came to meet it to collect mail and goods. But as road transport developed in the country, the Bou became less useful to the people. Abandoned on the docks of Saint-Louis for several years, it was bought by a Frenchman, Georges Consol, who gave it a new lease of life. In 1980, she became a tourist boat that made cruises between Saint-Louis and Podor. This period lasted only a short time, because following the construction of the Diama dam, she left the Senegal River to join the Casamance and then Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau and the Sine-Saloum. Away for several years from his beloved region of Saint-Louis, it was not until 2005 that the Bou found its original river, bought by Jean-Jacques Bancal, a passionate Saint-Louisian, and several associates. On October 16, 2005, the entire population of St. Louis waited impatiently for its return, crowded on the quays, when the Faidherbe Bridge, closed for more than 20 years, slowly swung open to let this legendary boat in, under the nostalgic but joyful gaze of onlookers. Barely a month later, the inaugural cruise between Saint-Louis and Podor is organized, the first of a whole series, which takes place every week from October to May, thus retracing its historical course.
A unique interstate cooperation
In 1972, when terrible droughts hit the Senegal River valley and crops were threatened by the rising salt water over nearly 250 km, Mali, Senegal and Mauritania decided to join forces to control water resources, while using them rationally, with the necessary developments. This led to the creation of a joint cooperation between the States and the Organization for the Development of the Senegal River (OMVS), which Guinea joined in 2006. One of the first achievements of the Organization was the construction of the Diama dam, 27 km upstream from Saint-Louis. The main purpose of the dam, which began operation in 1985, is to block the advance of sea salt into the interior in order to make the land suitable for agriculture. Thus, in periods of high water, this mobile dam opens to ensure the usual flow of the river, and closes in periods of low water to prevent the rise of salt water. It also serves as a drinking water reservoir, supplying, among other things, Lake Guiers, which itself supplies 60% of Dakar's water. Although this construction has saved agriculture in the valley, it has, however, like any dam, caused a change in ecosystems. Thus, at the mouth of the river, fresh water has difficulty flowing and the river is invaded by the ocean, while upstream from the dam, the water, which is now stagnant, leads to the proliferation of invasive plants, such as typha. The Manantali dam in Mali, built on one of the tributaries of the Senegal River, the Bafing, was also the result of this cooperation. In addition, since 2001, it produces electricity, which is then distributed among the shareholder countries, of which Senegal receives 33% of this production. The dream of the OMVS? To make the river navigable via a 905 km long channel, linking Saint-Louis to the river port of Ambidédi, a town located 40 km from Kayes in Mali, in order to open up certain towns and stimulate trade. However, this ambitious project, which has been under study for 40 years, requires such costly investments and substantial work that it will be several years before this dream becomes a reality.
A fertile valley
The alluvial valley of the Senegal River, which stretches from Bakel to Dagana, is one of the main flooding areas of the river. Its bed, which sometimes overflows up to 25 km wide during the winter season, fertilizes millions of hectares of land. Its banks have thus become a vital center of primary importance, attracting since the dawn of time many tribes who came to practice livestock and agriculture. With nearly 40,000 hectares under cultivation in 2018, irrigated rice cultivation is the main activity of the valley during the winter season, which has seen an increase in development in recent years. The country, which aims to be self-sufficient in rice, has placed the Senegal River Valley at the heart of this challenge, and since then, production has continued to grow, reaching nearly 60% of national production. The other economic engine of the region is undoubtedly sugar cane production, whose fields of the Compagnie Sucrière Sénégalaise cover more than 12,000 hectares at the gates of Richard Toll. Created in 1970, its agro-industrial complex, which employs up to 8,000 people at the height of the season, allows the entire process of cane transformation operations to be carried out on site, into refined sugar, the production of which reached nearly 145,000 tons in 2018. In October, the flooding begins, which leaves behind fertile, exposed land, allowing for different types of horticultural exploitation. Tomatoes, eggplants, pumpkins, watermelons and corn, a wide variety of species are grown by farmers. Although local production is far behind that of rice or sugar cane, horticulture is attracting more and more multinationals who see a future in the valley. In addition to Grands Domaines du Sénégal, the Société de cultures légumières, which has been operating in Diama since 2006, has also established itself as a leader in the sector, exporting more than 90% of its fruits and vegetables.
Mame Coumba Bang, the goddess of the river
The last city to be watered by the Senegal River, built on an island in the river's estuary, Saint-Louis is said to be under the protection of a goddess, Mama Coumba Bang, who lives in the fresh waters of the river. According to a local animist belief, this beautiful woman, dressed in a beautiful colored boubou, warned the inhabitants of Saint-Louis of the dangers that awaited them when she came to do her market. To avoid these misfortunes, she recommended them to make offerings, before sinking, the calabash on the head, in the deep waters. Thus, to chase away the evil eye, the Saint-Louisians took the habit of making libations, by pouring curdled milk to pay homage to the one nicknamed "grandmother". Her story, inscribed in the popular legend, has inspired more than one artist, like the griots who sing her memories to the rhythm of the balafon or the kora. Perhaps during your stay in Saint-Louis, you will come across a musician, storyteller or writer along the banks of the Senegal River, declaiming a few snippets of a future composition? Because Saint-Louis inspires artists from all over the world, who once crossed the Faidherbe Bridge, soak up this magical atmosphere, between river and ocean.
