By Amaury Hauchard – Ousmane Djebare Djenepo, wearing sunglasses and an easy smile, stands upright to show off the mighty Niger River which is flowing around his traditional wooden canoe, or pirogue. “Before, the river was deep and the fishing seasons long,” says Djenepo, head of the federation of fishermen of the Niger River’s inner delta. But in the inner Niger delta, overfishing has depleted stocks, and the Sahara desert is also encroaching on the green floodplains. Hamidou Toure, director of the delta’s fisheries development office, said that the Sahara has been “engulfing” the Niger River for years. Guindo, the fisheries director, said he wants all fishing to stop temporarily, “to give the river a biological rest”.

Source: The North Africa Journal April 22, 2021 03:45 UTC