Promoting Environmentalism in Saint-Louis: The Story of Citizen Activist Cheikh Ahmeth Tidiane Sarr

2024-01-11 08:15:27

Aged 74 and living in Saint-Louis, precisely at Quai Roume, not far from where the Bou El Mogdad cruise ship docks, Cheikh Ahmeth Tidiane Sarr is a model citizen who has worked hard to promote his city. Here, the environmentalist does not go unnoticed, due to all his commitment and his obvious activism. Indeed, the «naturophile» is considered to be a model citizen, a volunteer who advocates for the protection of nature.

“My project aims to make all the city’s banks clean, attractive, pleasant and welcoming.” After brilliant primary, secondary and university studies, this intellectual holds a Master’s degree in Political Sciences obtained at the University of Algiers in 1979, a Master’s degree in Public Law obtained at the Cheikh Anta Diop University (UCAD) of Dakar in 1983 achieved the feat of cleaning and reforesting, for years, the bank of the large arm of the Senegal River.

As soon as he returned home (Saint-Louis), he noticed the unsanitary state of the bank opposite his home. Indeed, piles of household waste, plastic and solid waste, animal carcasses and other rubbish littered the ground, even emitting a nauseating odor. Thus, the spectacle which presented itself to his sight in his immediate environment was desolate, poignant, to the point of disturbing him and gnawing at his heart.

Unable to bear this unsanitary condition any longer, he began by picking up the rubbish with his hand and putting it in bins. However, his parents, family members, neighbors, friends, well-wishers, passers-by, among others, were fundamentally once morest his initiative. He was being reprimanded everywhere to stop cleaning the bank. But this was wasted effort, given the man’s dedication and love for nature. Today, he has succeeded in making this bank opposite his home a heavenly place.

If some told him that this task was not his responsibility, others scolded him, bullied him, to remind him that he belongs to a large, honorable family and that he did not need to be interested in the maintenance of this bank. “People called me all sorts of names. But it pushed me, on the contrary, to persevere in my voluntary actions to protect nature, preserve and safeguard the environment. he said.

He wanted at all costs to make this river bank “a heavenly place, so that populations, tourists and other visitors can fully enjoy an ideal living environment, where we might spend pleasant moments, breathing fresh air. This is what I achieved today, following making sacrifices.”

This nature lover is often in heaven when he realizes that hundreds of tourists enjoy walking on the bank, sitting on its public benches installed by the writer Ms. Sokhna Benga. “I am also relieved when brave women squat on the clean and well-cleaned bank, to develop their small businesses, selling sandwiches, donuts and other treats, when many fellow citizens take advantage of the weekend to come and commune in joy and joy on the bank; This beautiful spectacle brings a balm to my heart.”

He nevertheless remained deeply marked by the unexpected visit of the mayor of the 300-year-old town, Mansour Faye, who came to see first-hand what he was able to achieve on the bank. “He encouraged me and thanked me warmly, on behalf of the people, before giving me a financial envelope to help me buy small equipment. Then, he ensured that I received, every month, a nest egg to support my initiatives, at the municipal level.”

YVES TENDENG

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