Regional/Cultural Day
World Day to Combat Desertification
In a country that is 90% Sahara, this day has particular resonance. The desert is advancing at a rate of 6 kilometers per year in some regions, and the once-fertile valleys of the Senegal River are being swallowed by sand. The GREAT Green Wall initiative : a pan-African project to plant a wall of trees across the Sahel : has a major implementation site in Mauritania, where acacia senegal and balanites aegyptiaca are being planted to stabilize dunes. In the Adrar plateau, ancient foggaras (underground irrigation channels) that once watered date palm groves have dried up, and the day is marked by community tree-planting campaigns and discussions of traditional water management.
