Building resilient farms in Senegal: Water and land management innovations under the AVENIR project

In Senegal’s drylands, the AVENIR project, led by MEDA with the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, empowers farmers with climate-smart innovations in water and soil management to build resilient, productive farms.

Across Senegal’s drylands, climate variability has become the defining challenge of rural life. In the regions of Tambacounda and Sédhiou, smallholder farmers endure daytime temperatures soaring up to 47°C and an average annual rainfall of about 594mm preceding a seven-month dry season, during which soils progressively lose fertility. These conditions erode food production, strain household incomes, and heighten the vulnerability of communities that rely almost entirely on agriculture for survival. Effective adaptation, therefore, depends not only on managing water and soil, but on rethinking how these critical resources are used, restored, and sustained over time.