On November 18 and 19, 2019, at the Place du Souvenir in Dakar, the ’’Dynamique sur la Transition Agroecological in Senegal’’ (DyTAES) organized the workshop of restitution of the local consultation's workshop agroecological transition (AET) in Senegal.

This context is particularly marked by the commitment of the Head of State of Senegal who has placed agroecology among its priorities for national development. This commitment, combined with the strong national dynamics observed in the field of agroecology, seems to be a major opportunity to make the transition at the national level a reality.

About a hundred participants from a variety of institutions attended the workshop: farmers' organizations, local and international NGOs, research, town halls, state institutions and services, consumer associations, National Assembly, Economic, Social and Environmental Council, etc.

For two days, the actors reflected on how to scale up agricultural practices based on the agro-ecological approach in Senegal. As such, the authorities who took part in the opening ceremony of the meeting have largely returned to the conditions of the favorable context that should be exploited to move towards this transition.

The overall objective of this workshop was to share and discuss the results of the workshops zonal consultations on AET in Senegal. The workshop also served as a space to present and amend major orientations and recommendations contained in the contribution document to national policies on specific question of the AET but also in relation to the land policy, with which it has a clear link. Specifically, this meeting had four objectives. 1) To present the DyTAES and its objectives; 2) to share the process and main results of local consultation on AET; 3) to discuss and validate the contribution document to national policies on AET and recommendations made to the State; 4) and to discuss next steps related to the DyTAES driven process, and including the organization of the next AE days.

Among the main issues mentioned by the population for the AET, the land security of family farms was cited in all zones. Given that agricultural activity is essentially based on this vital resource, it is important to consider how it should be secured, managed and developed in order to respond effectively to the challenges.

To achieve the objectives thus aimed, the workshop took place in five highlights:

• The presentation of the DyTAES and the steps of the consultation process;
• The return of a political analysis on the level of taking into account agroecology in national policies;
• The presentation of land reform proposals for a successful AET;
• Presentation and Group Work on the Policy Contribution Document
• Exchanges on the preparation of Agroecology days.

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Photo credit: DyTAES