USAID/Senegal in the Casamance

After more than two decades of conflict, a peace process is gaining momentum in Senegal’s southern region, the Casamance. During the fighting between government and separatist forces of the Mouvement des Forces Démocratiques de la Casamance (MFDC), thousands of civilians have been displaced, villages have been destroyed, and fields rendered useless because of landmines. Since 2000, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has contributed over $15 million in activities to help stabilize the Casamance region. USAID works with the Senegalese government, the local population, village-based associations, and non-government organizations (NGOs) in activities designed to give people hope and reasons to opt for peace. USAID’s private sector, agriculture, natural resources management, local governance, health and education programs also actively intervene in areas of the Casamance.