SENEGAL

SENEGAL

Banjul

Western

Lower River

Central River

Upper River

North Bank

The GAMBIA

GUINEA BISSAU

Serrekunda

Concern Universal

Concern Universal, 21 King St, Hereford, HR4 9BX, UK. Tel +44 (0)1432 355111. www.concern-universal.org. Registered as a Charity No: 272465

Funding Partners

Concern Universal Senegambia is one of nine Concern Universal

country programmes. Concern Universal is an international

development organisation tackling poverty from the grassroots. We

create opportunities for people around the world to improve their lives

and shape their own futures. By building skills and connecting people

at all levels in society, we help communities deliver practical solutions

with long term impact.

Working with partner organisations, we support community projects

that improve livelihoods, reduce vulnerability and promote greater

equality. To achieve this, we also influence policy, pioneer business

partnerships and engage public support for our approach.

Our Vision: A world where justice, dignity and respect prevail for all

Our Mission: To work in partnership to challenge poverty and

inequality. We support practical actions that enable people to improve

their lives and shape their own futures.

Concern Universal

The Gambia & Senegal

P.O. Box 2164

Serrekunda

The Gambia

Contact:

tel: +220 4494 473

fax: +220 4494 474

email: tony.jansen@concern-universal.org

Website: www.concern-universal.org/gambia

Australian Agency for

International

Development

British High

Commission, Banjul

Canada Fund

ECOWAS

European Union

Fondacion De France

Irish Aid

Isle of Man Government

Japan

Oxfam America

UMCOR

United Nations

Democracy Fund

(UNDEF)

United Nations Food and

Agriculture Organisation

(FAO)

United Nations World

Food Program (WFP)

USAID / OFDA

World Bank

WWDP

Country Summary: Senegambia

Senegambia Annual report 2012

Concern Universal Senegambia is a leading international development and

humanitarian aid organization, specialising in Disaster Risk Reduction and

Food Security and natural resource management. We work closely with local

communities and Gambian organisations to understand and respond to priority

needs. focus on building the capacity of Gambian organisations, and business-

led solutions that mobilise resources and encourage entrepreneurialism.

In 2012, we worked with 17 local partners, the

Government, civil society and the private sector;

Channelling around 50 million GMD ($1.5m USD) of development aid to help almost

35,000 people improve their lives.

Celebrating 20 years’

sustainable development in

The Gambia and Senegal

for people, for good

Expenditure by Category

43%

25%

23%

5% 3%

1%

Grants to Partners Staff Costs

Project Activities Office

Transport Equipment

Concern Universal: :

6,359 lives

14,811 lives

5,083 lives

impact

impact

impact

1,018 lives

5,998 lives

impact

impact

Welcome

Results

As we celebrate 20 years in the Gambia, the team have been reflecting

back on all the achievements we have made together with the Gambian

people over this period. For example, in 2002, our MOU with The

Department of State for Agriculture enabled us to extend support to the

people of Cassamance. The success of the SMILE project, first launched

in x helped women’s cooperatives to produce vegetables in the dry

season, not only closing the hunger gap, but meaning they could enter the

tourist market. Building on this, SMILE B established a water drilling

consortium for small farmers and women cooperatives. And it was from

this strong base of year-round, quality, local production that ‘Gambia is

Good’ (GIG) was formed and has since developed into an independent

private sector social enterprise.

In 2012, Concern Universal continued to focus on agriculture and natural

resource management, helping Senegambians strengthen their resilience

to a changing climate. We continue to seek African and particularly

domestic market opportunities and see sustainable agriculture as the best

approach for reaching the largest numbers of the poor.

Crops in the Sahel are grown close to their limits of tolerance, relying on

natural rainfall which is highly variable. Last year we have felt particularly

acutely the disastrous effects of even small changes. The sub region is

facing increasing challenges but I am confident and positive about the

opportunities. With your support, Concern Universal is well-placed and

determined to continue to support the people and organisations of

Senegambia to achieve sustainable development.

Senegambia

Food Security

Health

Rights

In total 33,269 people in Gambia and Senegal were directly assisted to

improve their lives

Tony Jansen

Country Director Gambia - Senegal

Skills

Vulnerability

In a country where almost everyone relies on agriculture of one form or another, we focus on

helping the poorest farmers earn a decent living. Gambians have witnessed dramatic changes

in climate over the years, which informs what we do and how we do it. We support people to:

improve horticultural, livestock and agro-forestry practices; have access to potable water;

access to new markets for Gambian fresh produce; to promote micro gardening; to take on new

initiatives such as reduced fuel wood use through piloting improved fuel efficient stoves.

Since 2004, the Gambia is Good initiative has been providing market opportunities for small-

scale Gambian farmers, helping them grow from subsistence farming to commercial

enterprise. It has also been particularly successful in raising awareness to a wide range of

people about the opportunities for small and medium sized farmers. Gambia is Good has won

multiple awards based on the impact that it has made. In 2012 GiG became an independent

social enterprise under the umbrella of global horticulture business Haygrove, with our

continued strategic involvement.

Another highlight of our livelihood program has been improved dry season rice production. In

2012, we provided four diesel pumps, installed 1270 metres of canal network and rice seeds

and training to enhance productivity of 19hectares of land under community managed dry

season rice production. This has enable the communities to produce rice all year round,

increasing their yields by 45.5% per hectare over the national average of 7 tons. This meant

that 3,584 people reduced their hungry season from 8.5 months to three months.

For more information on our impact last year, visit xxxxxxx

Disaster Risk Reduction and Response

Building Capacity

The Sahel region is drying up. Seasons are less predictable and extreme weather is increasingly

prevalent. So we are committed to helping build Gambia’s resilience and capacity to respond to

disasters over the long term. This has two main thrusts – building the capacity of partners to form

networks that can assess and respond to disasters and raising awareness and communities’

own capacity to prepare and strengthen their resilience.

In 2012 we contributed to the response to the Sahel Drought. The 2011 drought was

unprecedented in scale – affecting millions across the Sahel. Crop yields dropped by 50% in the

Gambia and the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) assessments identified and

supported some of the 400,000 people without enough food in the Gambia. We were an active

partner in NDMA forums, participating in national assessments and assisting with implementing a

series of targeted relief efforts.

While our footprint is smaller than the big UN agencies, we were able to push forward innovative

responses to the Sahel drought – the most severe since the 1980s. We partnered with the

World Food Program, WASDA, NACCUG and NDMA to help 20,000 people with a pilot of cash

transfers to the most vulnerable people, allowing them to choose what they buy and invest more

of it in the local economy rather than food aid based on imports. Our programme also involved

improving latrines and integrated WASH programs; community-led selection of the most

vulnerable households for assistance; housing reconstruction from flooding and community risk

mapping. The Concern Universal blog documented this innovative response www.concern-

universal.org/blog).

Building the Capacity

of Gambian and

Senegalese

Organisations

We believe that strengthening

civil society is vital to building a

sustainable, equitable Gambia.

So we raise the profile of

Gambian Civil Society

organisations and improve

people's understanding of how

they can help them achieve their

development aims.

We supported The Alliance of

Non-Government Organisations

(TANGO) to establish an

advocacy unit for its 72 Gambian

members. We produced and

shared advocacy framework

materials to support members in

developing their own advocacy

campaigns. We also produced

and distributed an advocacy

booklet and a perception study

on NGOs, documenting public

perceptions on the role and

contribution of NGOs in national

development in their program

planning. In addition we are

offering continued support to

TANGO to engage with

government and use the media to

discuss some policy issues (such

as local government Act, Value

Added Tax, NGO Bill, Population

policy).

New partnerships in Senegal

In 2012 we focused on building new strategic partnerships in Senegal with the aim of benefitting

more people. We are developing innovative links with NGOs, private sector organizations and

donors to upscale our work in agricultural livelihoods, peace building and capacity building in

Senegal in coming years. Our focus in this troubled region of Senegal is on livelihoods. We

integrate livelihoods with community linkages, capacity building and indirectly peace building. We

have strong and well connected partners and have been able to focus our efforts on livelihood

programs in ‘Foni’ area of Casamance – areas considered hotspots in the conflict. An increasing

focus is on forest conservation connected to increased community control over and sustainable

utilization of forests. An example is the Kioudoube Community Forest, In Kataba-un district.

“Before, people didn’t trust one another but this project has brought unity, especially amongst

womenfolk. People before were cutting trees and taking things from the forest who were not from

the community, but this community forest has given us the opportunity to protect the forest

resources for the people who live here so we can live from it and benefit from its resources.”

Jonkunda Ceesay (Kioudoube Community Forest Committee and community resident)

We are guided by our experience of 20 years’ practical development in partnership with Gambian

people and organisations to focus on these areas. They represent where we understand that we

can help the most people in the most important ways.

Improved agricultural productivity and farm incomes