On February 24, while waste pickers working at the Mbeubeuss dumpsite in Dakar were engaged in a mediation process with the authorities, they were surprised by the police, who appeared and evicted hundreds of waste pickers from the main section of the dumpsite. Seventeen workers were arrested, among them leaders from the National Union of Waste Pickers and the Bokk Diom Association. As part of the eviction, authorities set fire to waste pickers’ work spaces.
“We are currently facing a catastrophic situation,” said Harouna Niass, President of Bokk Diom, one of the oldest organisations of waste pickers in the world.
PROMOGED Project Puts Livelihoods at Risk
This eviction is part of the World Bank-financed PROMOGED project in Senegal, which launched in 2021 and aims to restructure the Mbeubeuss dumpsite and modernise Senegal’s waste management system. The project includes the restructuring and gradual closure of the dumpsite which will leave thousands of people who earn their living by collecting recyclable and compostable materials at Mbeubeuss without their livelihoods.
World Bank-financed projects such as PROMOGED include funding to safeguard the livelihoods of impacted workers. This means that, to mitigate the negative impacts of the project, the State is responsible for compensating waste pickers and establishing social programmes, among other things, for the restoration of their livelihoods and the provision of reskilling support. But the process involving waste pickers through PROMOGED has been divisive and disempowering for waste pickers, with no effort made to integrate them into alternative livelihoods nor plans for their compensation.
Waste Picking Provides A Lifeline for Waste Pickers at Mbeubeuss
At least 50 per cent of the waste pickers in Mbeubeuss surveyed in 2018 did not know how they would make money if they lost access to waste. For 89 per cent of the waste pickers working in Mbeubeuss, this activity is their primary source of income; 53.5 per cent have never had another job.
The evictions took place shortly after the screening in Dakar of the film “The Waste Commons” (De l’Ordure à l’Or Dur), which documents the struggle of the Mbeubeuss waste pickers for a just transition. Despite the mediation process initiated through the Khalif des Layennes at the request of the Prefect and the head of PROMOGED, on 24 February, waste pickers were deceived when police arrived by surprise to evict them and destroy their workplaces. This situation has a social impact on thousands of people considering the hundreds of workers affected and their households.
The Eviction Proceeded Despite Repeated Attempts at Dialogue by Waste Pickers
Waste pickers have consistently expressed their willingness to negotiate the conditions of their relocation within the dumpsite with authorities. Among these, the need to respect the livelihood restoration plan, and the agreements in the meetings in the town of Saly, on August 9-10, 2024. Some of the conditions agreed in Saly included adequate facilities in the relocation site, as well as support for funding and training for waste pickers.
Amidst rising pressure from the government to move forward without binding agreements to this effect, since December 2024 waste pickers have flagged to the World Bank, the Prime Minister, the Minister of Urban Planning, Territorial Communities and Land Planning, and the Director of PROMOGED of the negative impacts of this eviction in the absence of an agreement with the authorities.
Bokk Diom calls on the director of PROMOGED and the Ministry of Urban Planning to resume an inclusive and participatory process for the restructuring of the Mbeubeuss dumpsite, securing waste pickers’ livelihoods as part of a just transition. It also calls on the World Bank to ensure that the Senegalese authorities respect the Environmental and Social Framework in the implementation of the project.
For media interviews, contact: Harouna Niass de Bokk Diom +221765856059 | International Alliance of Waste Pickers: +1-503-464-6653
About Bokk Diom:
Bokk Diom is a waste picker association in Senegal with close to 1,300 members.
About the International Alliance of Waste Pickers:
The International Alliance of Waste Pickers is a union of waste picker organizations representing more than 460,000 workers across 34 countries. See: https://globalrec.org
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