After days of torrential rain, salt miner Moussa Diare could only watch in despair as flood waters breached a meters-wide gap on the banks of Senegal's Pink Lake and washed away thousands of dollars worth of salt mounds he had gathered. Senegal, like other countries in the West and Central Africa region, has recorded above-normal rainfall in recent weeks that has unleashed destructive floods after poor drainage systems failed. A worker carries a crate containing newly harvested salt from the edge of Lac Rose also known as Lake Retba as she walks past Female vendors, selling handcrafts for tourists in Niaga, near Dakar, Senegal, September 6, 2022. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra "This is the first time I've seen this. I lost a lot of money with my salt that has been washed and dissolved by...
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As the international art world flocks to Dakar for the African art biennale, Senegalese artist Fally Sene Sow only has to look out the window to find inspiration in the chaotic street market outside his studio in the capital. Normally colourful and bustling, the area in Dakar's Colobane district became much more sombre during the pandemic, prompting Sow to create an apocalyptic vision of what his neighbourhood could become. The result is an installation that fills an entire room of about 30 sq. metres (323 sq. ft), where model buildings are in a state of collapse, skeletons hang next to hybrid animals, thunder rumbles overhead and decaying waste generates heat, all of which combined create a foreboding atmosphere. Visitors take pictures of art installations during the 14th editio...
Read MoreDangling from umber cliffs that tower over Africa's westernmost shoreline, a crew of Senegalese climbers hunt for footholds that they say are vanishing. Rock climbing falls behind wrestling, football and surfing as well-loved Senegalese pastimes, but it has bound together a small community of locals and expats who say that their sport is under threat. Senegalese rock climber Abasse Wane climbs a rock wall at the Mamelles cliffs in Dakar, Senegal, June 27, 2021. REUTERS/Cooper Inveen The issue: coastal erosion caused by a massive construction boom in the capital Dakar where luxury hotels and condominiums are being built close to a once-untouched shoreline, eating away at the land and eroding the well worn climbing routes. Bits of hard cliff are quickly turning into slopes of sc...
Read MoreOn a small island where the Senegal River meets the sea, hundreds of mask-wearing jazz enthusiasts listened to French-Senegalese vocalist Awa Ly sing the blues for uncertain times. "Once you touched the sky and you went down," she crooned. "Use your inner senses and you'll figure it out, like a dream you can't remember." Percussionist Malick Fall addresses the crowd at the Hotel De La Residence during the Saint Louis Jazz Festival in Saint Louis, Senegal, June 19, 2021. REUTERS/Cooper Inveen Last year COVID-19 halted Saint Louis' jazz festival for the first time in its 29-year history. This year it was back, bringing much needed life to the Island of Saint Louis, a UNESCO World Heritage site famed for its colonial architecture and pastel-coloured houses. African rhythms, funk,...
Read MoreHerds of cows meander across the one-lane highway that leads down Senegal’s coast to Mbodiene, a farming village surrounded by scrubland where singer Akon plans to build a futuristic city. The designs, which show shiny, pinkish buildings that bend and curve like waves, would look at home in any sci-fi movie. Futuristic design of City planned by famous singer Akon In the master plan, architect Hussein Bakri has carved out space for a parking lot - for flying cars. Akon, the Senegalese-American singer of 2006 hit “Smack That”, has said the city will attract tourists and create thousands of jobs. U.S.-based firm KE International said it plans to start construction on the $6 billion project next year. But in Senegal, a West African country where villagers drive horse carts on u...
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