Savoirs locaux
Cutting trees to make charcoal (Bougarila, Mali), October 2021
The second job that people have during difficult periods is the cutting of trees in the bush to make wood to sell. We have seen that this practice is very useful to them because it allows them to get through these times. In addition, the trees grow again even if it takes a little time. The question we are asking
Memory of the forge in Damaro (Guinea), May 2022
The question of climate resilience also arises in terms of resource extraction and the production of agricultural tools. Amadou Siaki is a blacksmith in Damaro. His name, ‘Siaki’, literally means ‘jeweller’, which is what he is commonly called in the village. Otherwise, he is a blacksmith by birth, ‘numu’, which literally means ‘blacksmith’ in the broad sense. He who is
Drying up of water points (Bandafassi, Senegal), May 2021
“I don’t know if you know the place there, the place called Kuga. We used to draw water from there, but now there is no water. The old people who used to live here say that people used to draw water from there, but look at today, there’s not even any water. It’s amazing. Even if you dig, you can’t
Canaris making in Bandafassi (Senegal), May 2022
In this video, we see a Bedik woman making canaris. She explains that she takes the land up the mountain, that it is not just any land: it is land that was bought by their grandparents at the cost of their lives. Now, every time she digs the land to make canaris, they have to pay a goat, a chicken
Transhumance and sheep prices in Bouillagui (Mali), May 2022
Here we are tackling the problem of rising prices for Tabaski sheep this year in Bouillagui due to the high cost of feed for the cattle and the lack of grass in the bush, which has been ravaged by bush fires. Mauritanian livestock farmers have moved with their cattle to sell them at very high prices: indeed the high
Fattening in Banzana (Mali), April 2021
My name is Harouna Fomba from the region and circle of Kayes, in the rural commune of Liberté Dembaya. My work is breeding, which is called “fattening”, buying lean animals, getting them into shape and selling them afterwards. At a certain time, during the dry season, it is difficult to get natural fodder, and we also have many bush
Off-season gardens (Bouillagui, Mali), May 2021
The village of Bouillagui is located 85 kilometres from Kayes, in the commune of Guidimakan Kerry Kaffo. The inhabitants of this village have been practising off-season farming for more than twenty years. Donkosira supported the last works for the women’s market garden in 2020. The oases you can see there. There are gardeners who do market gardening next to
A water basin to water a garden in Banzana (Mali), May 2022
“I live in the Kayes region, my name is Djibril Sidibé, my village is called Banzana in the commune of liberté Dembaya. I am a gardener, you see my mango trees, the only reason why the trees do not give enough fruit is the lack of water! I dug a well in my garden but I only started again
The baobab of Diarakendou in Damaro (Guinea), August 2022
By Aguibou Sow Mandiou Camara speaks: “Here, the parents, the great-grandparents all found the baobab tree already big. They used to test their bows on the baobab. During the dry season, you can even see the cuts of the spears and arrows in the bark of the tree. This tree is very old, Fama, Fakassia, Fadiaraken: none of these ancestors
Threshing groundnuts in Bouillagui (Mali)
Threshing groundnuts in the field is done in several phases. In the first stage, small sticks are used to beat the large piles of groundnuts into small crumbs. Secondly, the women take the groundnuts and mix them with hay. Then the groundnut is separated from the hay by sweeping it up. . When the wind blows strongly,