Namarel Borehole Management: Senegal Community Seeks SDER Takeover

• Residents in Namarel are advocating for the transfer of their borehole management from a local committee to the state-owned SDER.
• The current local committee has managed the water infrastructure for 18 years, prompting concerns about governance and transparency.
• Oumar Amadou Ba, representing local youth, is leading efforts to formalize this request, seeking support from various government officials.
• This local dispute reflects broader institutional challenges in Senegal's rural water management, including a suspended national SDE-OFOR rural water management agreement.
• Despite widespread support for the change, a small group of eight individuals opposes the integration of the borehole into SDER.

The community's collective sentiment leans towards entrusting the Namarel borehole management to SDER, believing that such a transition would usher in a more transparent, efficient, and sustainable approach to water provision.

In the community of Namarel, residents are actively seeking a change in the management of their vital hydraulic infrastructure, specifically their borehole. For the past eighteen years, a local committee has overseen this essential service, but its prolonged tenure has become a source of significant concern among the populace. Critics point to issues of governance and a lack of transparency as primary reasons for their dissatisfaction with the current arrangement.

Oumar Amadou Ba, acting as a representative for the local youth, has formally communicated these "serious difficulties" to the regional supervisor of the Société de développement des eaux rurales (SDER) in Saint-Louis. The community's collective sentiment leans towards entrusting the Namarel borehole management to SDER, believing that such a transition would usher in a more transparent, efficient, and sustainable approach to water provision. The extended period of the existing committee's control has fueled questions regarding accountability and the necessary rotation of leadership, prompting the desire for a more structured and publicly accountable entity to take over.

The local Namarel water governance dispute unfolds against a backdrop of complex institutional dynamics within Senegal's rural water management sector. The organization of rural water services has previously necessitated high-level state intervention, underscoring the significant institutional stakes involved. A notable instance involved the Sénégalaise des eaux (SDE), which, following the loss of its urban water management responsibilities to Suez, was slated to assume control of the rural sector through an agreement with the Office des forages ruraux (OFOR).

However, this planned transfer of rural water management to SDE, facilitated by an agreement with OFOR, was subsequently suspended by presidential directive. During a Council of Ministers meeting, then-President Macky Sall specifically instructed then-Minister Serigne Mbaye Thiam to halt the implementation of this management transfer. This decision highlights the intricate and often politically charged nature of public service provision in rural areas, demonstrating that challenges extend far beyond the specific difficulties encountered in individual localities like Namarel. The broader policy landscape significantly influences local outcomes, making the proposed Namarel borehole management by SDER a matter of both local and national interest for Senegal rural water management.

Despite the clear desire for change, the integration of the Namarel borehole into SDER management is not a guaranteed outcome. Oumar Amadou Ba and the proponents of this shift are actively seeking broad governmental support to formalize their request. Their outreach extends to multiple levels of administration, including the sub-prefect of Gamadji Sarré, the departmental prefect, and the governor of Saint-Louis, indicating the multi-jurisdictional nature of Saint-Louis water infrastructure decisions. Furthermore, they are engaging with the general directors of both OFOR and SDER to garner institutional backing for the proposed change.

To solidify their initiative, the group intends to submit a formal petition to the sub-prefecture. The overarching objective of these efforts is to secure a lasting solution to the current management challenges and, critically, to ensure improved access to potable water for all residents. However, the path to reform is not without obstacles; Oumar Amadou Ba Namarel has identified a specific group of eight individuals who are actively opposing the proposed integration of the borehole into SDER, underscoring the internal divisions and complexities inherent in the Namarel water governance dispute.

Lawyers advising on public service provision or infrastructure projects in rural Senegal should be aware of the governance and transparency challenges highlighted by long-standing local management committees, and the complex institutional processes involved in transferring such services to state entities like SDER, which may involve local, regional, and national government intervention.

Source: Original reporting via Rewmi