Volunteers promoting Canada’s expertise in Senegal
Country: Senegal © Anne Vincent, SUCO
The Volunteer Cooperation Program (VCP) provides opportunities for Canadians to get involved internationally by volunteering their expertise and time. Since 2015, through the VCP with Solidarité Union Coopération (SUCO), 138 volunteers shared their skills with 44 local organizations in 8 countries.
In Senegal, SUCO volunteers worked in the regions of Casamance, Thiès and Dakar with rural communities that rely on family farming. Their efforts helped improve crop productivity and enhance nutrition, while also promoting climate-smart farming methods. For example, in December 2019, volunteers supported reforestation activities, helping to plant 15,239 trees to improve soil quality and water retention.
Volunteers also supported Senegalese women farmers and their families through partnerships like the women’s development network of Nguekhokh. Sophie Ngom, one of the project’s 12,000 beneficiaries, talked about the positive impact this had for women like her: “Through our fish and vegetable yields, we are no longer subject to the impacts of high prices for vegetables in the market. We’re more independent because we set our own prices and, as women, we help each other out to ensure we can provide meals every day for our families.”
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