The Senegal Ecovillage
Microfinance Fund

The SEM Environment division designs, implements and manages projects that work in partnership with local communities to address environmental degradation in a sustainable manner. We recognize that poverty is a significant driver of environmental degradation and therefore work towards solutions that reverse poor land use practices by providing practical alternatives to meet essential needs of impoverished communities throughout Senegal.

Currently, SEM Environment is implementing the CDM Dakar Sustainable Energy Project in collaboration with the SEM Fund, our micro finance branch. The project provides poor households in Dakar with a more efficient cooking system. Our cooking system works with much less fuel than conventional wood stoves and replaces charcoal with a sustainable supply of biomass. This sustainable source of biomass will be provided from sustainably managed plantations developed on degraded land. At the local level, the project collaborates with a series of social development associations. This will ensure very efficient monitoring activities, data collection, a deep understanding of the local populations and their needs.

SEM’s objectives are the following:

• Provide a long-term solution to reverse deforestation in Senegal
• Provide a stable supply of sustainable energy in peri-urban areas of Senegal and, thus, reduce the country’s dependence on imported oil products
• Relieve some of the considerable financial pressure on households
• Eliminate health risks linked to indoor-air pollution
• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

For more information about the project, please contact Mr. Matteo Bigoni at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.