Saloum Delta Producers Pitch Mangrove Goods to Dakar Markets

The "Made in the Saloum Delta" event stems from an ILO-led initiative funded by Germany’s BMZ, aimed at professionalizing informal labor. To date, the project has trained 530 people in shellfish farming, 407 in beekeeping, and 400 in green entrepreneurship. These efforts have culminated in the formation of 15 registered cooperative societies, providing a legal framework for producers to formalize supply agreements. Beyond production, the initiative provides health insurance for 3,471 residents and has established a dedicated marketing start-up to manage quality assurance and logistics.

Samira Daoud of the ILO noted that these commercial ties serve a dual purpose: stabilizing household incomes while incentivizing the preservation of the mangrove ecosystem. With 50 products already securing Manufacturing and Marketing Authorization and a territorial label in development, the project seeks to transition from pilot status to a scalable model. Minister Ousmane Diagne, overseeing the livestock sector, signaled interest in replicating this value-chain structure across Senegal’s seven primary beekeeping regions, emphasizing that the long-term success of the program depends on the producers' ability to maintain consistent market standards.