Assist 500 Gambian women to become entrepreneurs

A three day transboundary visit by the TRY Oyster Women Association to Southern Senegal oyster and cockle harvesting communities in the Allahein River estuary took place from the 9th to 11th January 2014.The delegation of TRY was composed of the Coordinator Fatou Janha, Coordinator of TRY Isatou Jarjue, Ebrima Jabang of the Department of Fisheries and Babanding Kanyi of the Department of Fisheries. The visit was funded under the USAID/BaNafaa project seed grant to TRY Association.
The delegation visited five communities: Niafarang, Kabadjo, Abene, Katak, and Donbondir. These communities are part of the Allahein Kafoo established in March 2013 during the initial joint meeting of communities sharing the Allahein River estuary shellfish resources, following a participatory rural appraisal (PRA) conducted in 2012. It comprises oyster and cockle harvesting communities from Sothern Senegal and The Gambia. The communities from Southern Senegal include Niafarang, Kabadjo, Donbondir, Katak, Mamouda and Boudouk. The communities on the Gambian side are Kartong and Berending. The oyster and cockle harvesters from both Southern Senegal and The Gambia share the oyster and cockle resources in the Allahein River estuary. The water body serves as a natural boundary between the two countries which has crossing points either by boat or on foot at low tide. Oyster and cockle harvesting has become the livelihood of peoples living near the Allahein River estuary since time immemorial. The fishery creates employment, income and revenue and provides food security as well. The importance of the Allahein River estuary to the peoples living near and beyond cannot be down played. However, the oyster and cockle resources are declining as a result of over exploitation and bad practice in oyster harvesting and cockle collection. Management measures put in place through the process of participatory eco-system based co-management are needed to reverse this trend to ensure a sustainable fishery. Because these Southern Senegal communities are engaged in oyster and cockle harvesting in the Allahein River estuary in Kartong in the Republic of the Gambia; thus sharing the oyster and cockle resources with Kartong. The shared stock of oyster and cockles requires implementation of a joint transboundary co-management strategy for exploitation of the fishery resources to ensure sustainable livelihood for both oyster and cockle harvesters on the two sides of the border.

• Report (PDF)