Work and Achievements

Sahel Eco works at three levels:

Supporting pastoralists, agro-pastoralist and farming communities develop and strengthen sustainable strategies for poverty reductions, focusing on the equitable and sustainable management of the natural resources on which their livelihoods depend.

Supporting decentralised local government structures and civil society organisations to promote the specific of people living in arid and semi-arid zones.

Working in collaboration with government bodies, donors and development organisations to develop and put into practice pro-poor policy.

Bankass

More secure and fairer access to natural resources for pastoralists and agro-pastoralists. Improved understanding by 12 communes of the need to work together to manage key resources, the communes now look to the district council to make key decisions concerning livestock corridors of regional importance and management of the Samori forest area. This led to the Permanent Technical Secretariat for the Environmental modifying its guidelines for environmental planning to address the interdependence between villages, communes and districts.

 Local associations are now working effectively in the decentralised context. For example more socially inclusive and representative NRM associations have developed from traditional institutions, and since 2000 these have been liasing directly with technical services and elected government representatives – independently of the programme.

 Local government and MPs raised funds for, and organised a forum about, NRM in Bankass in 2000. Major donors and various ministry representatives attended the forum. The forum enabled local people to lobby the National Director of Nature Conservation to speed up the transfer of authority for NRM to more appropriate levels, and another forum is being held in 2003.

 Tominion

The programme focuses on raising awareness about development issues through the use of REFLECT literacy training; raising awareness about natural resource entitlements; shared management of common property resources including water and support to women’s credit groups. General achievements have included a relatively conflict free demarcation of local commune boundaries following a programme of awareness raising about decentralisation; and increased confidence of communities to engage with local government and technical services to negotiate solutions to development problems.

 Mopti

Mopti and Bankass pastoralists’ programme started in January 2003, implemented in collaboration with a local NGO EVEIL to promote pastoralists’ participation in decentralised government through civic education; literacy; raising awareness amongst local government officials, and research.

Sahel Eco is a founding member of Fifth Region Decentralised NRM network (GDRN5) and which is widely recognised as an effective NGO lobbying network on NRM.

Useful Links www.friendsofmali-uk.org