Wetlands International launched a workshop on advocacy for private sector engagement in landscape conservation in the Saloum Delta as part of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
Participants of CSR training workshop
It is through a meeting that aims to train representatives of civil society, local communities, from the mangrove platform to modern techniques for the conservation of the Saloum Delta that the NGO has sensitized the actors for the protection of nature.
The Saloum Delta is one of the most beautiful regions of Senegal. Today, this area is threatened by coastal erosion but also with the construction of many infrastructures that have negative impacts on the mangrove ecosystem. It is with this in mind that the NGO Wetlands International initiated this workshop to help the various actors to better understand the principles and concepts of Corporate Social Responsibility. So doing advocacy for the preservation of the ecosystem, explained the executive director of Wetlands International.
According to Ibrahima Thiam, the advocacy focuses on two things, firstly, the Delta is a fragile ecosystem composed of mangroves, beaches, turtles that have an economic value that allows people to develop fishing, horticulture, production of honey. On the other hand, the construction of many infrastructure in this area, including highways, bridges, hydrocarbon industries that often have impacts on the mangrove ecosystem. It is thus for the NGO to launch the alert to bring companies to realize the importance of the ecosystem through Corporate Social Responsibility.
Representing civil society, Abdou Lo, hotel manager in Toubacouta welcomed the workshop which he said will better equip civil society that can leverage with the private sector to find the best formula to protect and preserve the environment. He said he was “aware of the tourist potential that the Saloum Delta is overflowing”.