On the ecological and human level, Mbeubeuss is a bomb. The State wants to withdraw more than 200 children who live at the level of the dump at the risk of their future and their life. In the meantime, Promoged wants to build a daycare center there.
Par Abdou Latif MANSARAY – This is a reassuring announcement: more than 200 children from Mbeubeuss will be removed from the dump. This is an announcement from Ibrahima Diagne, Director General of the Integrated Promotion and Waste Economy Project (Promoged). In meeting with the actors of the sector, he let know that it is time to concretize the withdrawal of the children of the landfill of Mbeubeuss, which compromises their future. “More than 200 children are currently in this dump, not in search of knowledge, but rather in search of having it. And we found that there really is a child protection issue that arises. This is the reason why the State wanted to get involved in order to be able to tackle this problem in a truly sustainable way, by activating the necessary levers to definitively withdraw these children from the landfill, ”advances the director of Promoged.
In the past, if you remember, there were attempts by state structures to get these kids out of the Mbeubeuss dump. Unfortunately, it ended in total failure. After some time, they returned to this polluted and compromising world. Aware of these previous failures, Ibrahima Diagne intends to go methodically. In what doing? “Faced with this structural problem, we must provide a structural solution, and not just remove the children from the dump. But we must go back to the origin, to the causes. Because today we have seen that there are children who come, in addition to Senegal, from other West African countries, from other villages, but also there are talibés, and still others who are breadwinners. And that means that these children, if you remove them from the landfill without offering sustainable alternative solutions, they will be forced to return to the usual place,” explains the director of Promoged. Despite his goodwill, removing the children from this landfill will not be easy. What to do to overcome resistance? “We are going to address everyone and we are going to solicit everyone. We will talk to Koranic teachers, we will talk with the educational world, imams, neighborhood delegates, but especially with mothers, ”says Mr. Diagne, who promotes an inclusive approach.
Kindergarten
In the meantime, it is necessary to set up reception structures. At the landfill, which is another world, several generations clash: old people, adults, young girls, women, but the most sensitive issue and the most shocking observation is the presence of small children and babies who live there at the risk of their lives. Taking into account this vulnerable segment of the population, the director of Promoged plans alternative measures. He says: “We are seeing how to put a nursery for children at the entrance to the dump to allow these women, when they come to Mbeubeuss to seek their income, they can deposit their babies in a a much more appropriate framework than the landfill.” He goes on: “The children, aged 7 to 17, once removed from the landfill, will be installed at the level of the training centers, and will benefit from monitoring to enable them to have a certain economic activity in compliance with laws and regulations.
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