The support programme for the Senegalese Federation of Inhabitants aims to develop the urban planning and housing improvement capacity of inhabitants in the precarious neighbourhoods of Dakar’s suburbs.
Since the end of the 1980s, the suburbs of Dakar have suffered recurrent flooding, causing considerable damage, particularly in the commune of Djiddah Thiaroye Kao (DTK), and in other nearby communes.
For nearly 20 years, certain residential areas have been flooded for several months each year, forcing some residents to abandon or rebuild their homes, or live in particularly precarious conditions, exposing them to significant health risks and preventing them from carrying out economic activities on an ongoing basis.
From 2007 onwards, urbaMonde joined forces with local actors – residents organised in a collective of associations (CADDTK), as well as Senegalese urban professionals who had been looking for sustainable solutions to recurrent floods since 2005 – to strengthen the planning, prevention, and flood risk management capacities of the inhabitants of precarious districts.
This collaboration led to a participatory planning process carried out across the municipality of DTK and the emergence of a citizens’ movement organised within the Senegalese Federation of Inhabitants (FSH) and its NGO technical support, urbaSEN.
This residents’ federation now has nearly 20,000 members organised into more than 700 savings groups, the vast majority of which are made up of women (96%). Groups affiliated to the FSH are present in around fifteen municipalities in the suburbs of Dakar and in the regions of Thiès, Louga and Ziguinchor. It is a member of Slum Dwellers International, a network of slum dwellers present in 32 countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
The FSH advocates for local, participatory urban governance and fills a real gap in the urban development process: resident participation. Indeed, the expectations and needs of people living in informal settlements are only very partially taken into account, and residents are rarely listened to. This community movement, rooted in the heart of these neighbourhoods, aims to give them a voice and legitimise their place in local dialogue and decision-making.
2010 – 2013 Reducing water and land risks through concerted planning of the DTK commune
From 2005, the state launched an emergency plan, the Jaxaay plan, which aimed to rehouse the populations affected by the floods in a new housing estate located 30 km from Dakar and to build retention basins on the freed-up land. However, this scheme proved to be inadequate and, at times, out of touch with people’s needs: some members of the population were left without support, and certain residents opposed the rehousing arrangements. Residents then took action to find sustainable solutions to this social, urban and environmental problem right there in the flooded neighbourhoods.
With the support of a local technical team and urbaMonde, the flood-affected populations then set up the UrbaDTK1 project, which aimed to support the restructuring of irregular neighbourhoods in the commune of Djiddah Thiaroye Kao (DTK), one of the communes most affected by the floods, through participatory urban planning focusing primarily on the management of hydraulic risks and land security.
Considerable efforts have been made to strengthen local capacities in urban planning and water infrastructure and to unite residents around urban issues. At the same time, urban professionals and residents have been lobbying at all levels of the Senegalese government to improve understanding of the origin and causes of flooding and to propose solutions.
The UrbaDTK 1 project has enabled the formalisation of residents’ proposals in an urban development plan and a priority investment plan for the municipality of DTK, and has reduced land risk through a land register and a municipal census. The project also led to the establishment of a Municipal Planning Office (BMU) – the first of its kind in Senegal and still in operation today – which has provided the DTK Town Council with genuine expertise in urban planning. Until then, the municipality, which has more than 150,000 inhabitants, did not have a municipal map. UrbaSEN and the BMU coordinated a large-scale field survey, enabling the identification and mapping of more than 6,000 plots.
2014 – 2017 Rebuilding 200 flooded houses in the commune of DTK
The participatory urban planning scheme developed as part of the UrbaDTK1 project proposed a series of measures to improve living conditions for residents of the municipality of DTK, particularly by better managing flood risks in residential areas. These measures involved significant investment from the central government and went beyond the scope of action of local authorities and residents’ groups.
Building on this initial project, UrbaDTK2 aimed to support civil society in a process of sustainable housing reconstruction. It was designed to provide solutions for accessing affordable finance, as well as technical support for residents of deprived neighbourhoods. Faced with a lack of solutions for improving housing, particularly for homes damaged by flooding, it was therefore citizen-led action – organised by the FSH and supervised by professionals – that stepped in to complement and extend the government’s efforts in deprived neighbourhoods.
Housing reconstruction and improvement projects typically involve relatively modest schemes without great architectural pretensions but with significant social impact. The projects are drawn up by members of the savings groups affiliated to the FSH and approved by both the members and the FSH’s credit committee.
The urbaSEN technical team supports each project throughout the costing, monitoring and handover process. During the UrbaDTK2 project, 213 low-income households were able to secure funding from the FSH revolving fund to rebuild their homes, with technical support from urbaSEN.
2018 – 2021 Consolidate the Senegalese Federation of Inhabitants and improve 400 homes
The FSH mobilises and federates its members to make their voices heard with public authorities and to defend their interests regarding access to decent and sustainable housing. It takes care of all community aspects, such as information sharing, admission of new groups, and beneficiary selection, within the framework of projects aimed at improving the living environment of people living in precarious urban areas.
The innovation lies in pooling, on a global scale, the savings collected within each group. This pooling helps fund the revolving fund, a sustainable financial tool managed by the federation with support from urbaSEN. It both requires and fosters an awareness among the federation’s members that, together, they have greater power to act: ‘Mbolo Mooy Dole, Unity is Strength’ is its slogan.
UrbaSEN and the FSH also run a local brickworks, which supplies ongoing construction sites, enables the production of high-quality building materials at an affordable price, and provides training for local tradespeople. In addition, technical training is provided to bricklayers and members of residents’ groups, who are responsible for monitoring the site and reporting any issues.
Since 2015, the FSH has been a member of the Slum Dwellers International (SDI) network, a voice for the urban poor in 32 countries, organised in federations of savings groups. The « SDI model », which mobilises the urban poor to improve their housing through solidarity savings rituals, data collection, and political advocacy, has strongly inspired the creation of the FSH and the vision of urbaSEN as a technical assistance organisation at the service of the inhabitants.
The Dakar suburbs from the sky
A movie about the FSH – Mbolo Moy Dole – the Union Makes Strength!
This film traces the story of the urbaSEN and the Senegalese Federation of Inhabitants in Dakar. Hit by violent floods, precarious inhabitants are organised to address many urban problems and improve their habitat.
2023 – World Habitat Award
In 2023, UrbaSEN and the Senegalese Federation of Residents were awarded the World Habitat Award. Organised by World Habitat with the support of UN-Habitat, it is the world’s leading housing award. The winners receive £10,000 and have the opportunity to take part in international development projects.
How does the FSH work?
▶ other videos on the YouTube channel of our partner urbaSEN
The Senegalese Federation of Inhabitants in « Sous les toits du monde » (Under the roofs of the world)
