Construction Subject To Obligation to Afforest in Senegal

The ecological gesture of planting a tree will soon no longer be optional in Senegal. The President of the Republic has recently announced a bill to this effect. For the government, it is a question of accelerating reforestation in order to preserve the environment. . “We have to plant trees everywhere. This is why I am going to propose, within the framework of the Construction Code and the Urban Planning Code, that from now on, construction permits be backed by the obligation to plant trees in front of houses and to ensure their permanent maintenance,” said President Macky Sall. In this West African country, the baobab tree is considered a historical and emblematic symbol. It is associated with symbols evoking life and death: while their leaves are used to make medicinal herbal teas and their fruit for decoctions for newborns, the baobab bark has long served as a shroud for griots. And yet the baobabs of Senegal are now faced with uncontrolled urbanisation and industrial activity that threaten their survival. Therefore, Senegalese government wants to expand reforestation throughout the country by making construction of housing and public buildings subject to the obligation to afforest.