Wetland restoration and poverty reduction through ecotourism
Long before there was widespread concern for the environment, the population of today’s Diawling National Park (DNP) lived as part of their environment; protect and use it and the surrounding areas that formed a lush ecosystem of dunes, estuaries, pastures and forests, rich in biodiversity of plants and wildlife; capable of sustainably sustaining thousands of inhabitants. Located in the southwestern corner of Mauritania on 15,600 hectares, this wetland region became a state park in 1991, under the management of Diawling National Park. The park is bordered to the south by the Senegal River, to the west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the north by the Chat Tboul Reserve and encroaching sand dunes, to the northeast by Keur Massene (a popular hunting ground), and to the east by non-occupational regulated. and agricultural production. Only a natural barrier of sand dunes divides the park’s freshwater and saltwater wetlands, creating a unique habitat for freshwater and saltwater birds. The park is a permanent year-round home for nearly 300,000 birds and is home to more than a million migratory birds during the winter months.
From the park’s very inception in 1991, goals included providing an economic future for the region’s inhabitants. However, over the past 20 years, the park’s ecosystem has been badly damaged by large outdoor infrastructure projects (dams, levees, and water diversion activities) and aggravated by indoor exploitation: hunting, overfishing, and farming and farming practices. Poor water management. Today, the park’s wetlands, its wildlife and its inhabitants face some of the most extreme natural conditions and man-made obstacles in their struggle to survive on degraded land in a deteriorating ecosystem.
However, when cooperating with an extremely poor population, whose only means of survival is a dying ecosystem, it is unrealistic to insist that they do more to preserve their sensitive environment. An alternative means of generating income must be developed and implemented, which focuses on maintaining your current lifestyle while using the ecosystem as an asset. Previous studies of the natural resources and economic potential of the DNP and evidence from the experience in Senegal’s adjacent Djoudj Park indicate that ecotourism may be the most effective way to achieve the objectives of: wetland conservation, preservation of traditional customs and provide a pathway out of poverty. . The very definition and concept of ecotourism empowers indigenous populations by giving both monetary value and dignity to their traditional activities.
During the creation of the park, there was significant resistance from the residents, who were aware of the situation that initially occurred in the Djoudj Park in Senegal; involving the forced relocation of the local population and the cessation of all activities. Additionally, many stakeholders both inside and outside the Park saw, and continue to see, economic development in terms of large infrastructure and agricultural projects; and not on the conservation and health of the wetland ecosystem. The involvement of numerous international organizations concerned about the environmental state of Diawling National Park has left residents with suspicions about their future in the park. Although Diawling’s concept has always been very different and encourages the continuation of local activities, including fishing, plant gathering and herding; residents fear that once the park’s ecosystem has been restored, they will be forced to leave in the name of conservation.
The initialization of ecotourism activities calms the fear of forced removal from the Park and ensures the need and future of the population in the Park as an integral part of the strategy of ecotourism, conservation and preservation of wetlands.
The inhabitants of Diawling National Park and its surroundings have historically been oppressed and quite invisible within Mauritanian society. However, improved economic status, independence and international recognition generate empowerment and respect within politics, strengthening their importance and securing land tenure rights.
The implementation of ecotourism in the park, and the resulting economic and environmental benefits for the community and Mauritania as a whole, will give the park’s vulnerable inhabitants a voice and a tangible argument against the continued exploitation of its most valuable resource, the river. Senegal. .
Experience in other regions of Mauritania indicates that tourists often leave with a deep attachment to the people they visited and become advocates for improving the economic well-being of the population.
Thus, under the strategy of ‘Wetland Restoration and Poverty Reduction through Ecotourism’ the environment, economic development and ecotourism are unified; they cannot exist as separate entities. What impacts one will impact the other.