Located in the Arewa, in the department of Dogon Doutchi, the rural community has 80,000 inhabitants and is made up of over 30 villages. Among them is the historic village of Lougou.

Administrative organisation.

The commune was created in 2004 within the decentralization scheme. It is managed by a democratically elected mayor assisted by 15 councillors.

The commune is linked to Cesson-Sévigné by a decentralized cooperation convention signed in 2009 with Oumarou Roho, then mayor.

From July 2011 to June 2021, the Mayor was Assimou Abarch. Since june 2021 the mayor has been Bandou Kaka.

Demography.

52% of the population is under 15 years of age.

Social and economic features.

Production:

  • Agriculture: In every village, the main crops are millet, cowpea, sorghum, and apart from carts, draught implements are hardly used at all. Fertilizers too are seldom used, but fungicides are common. Over the past few years, several villages in the community have had to cope with food shortages. This has led some inhabitants to resort to emigration, or in some cases, to avail themselves of the proximity of Nigeria and start small-scale commercial activities.
  • Stock Farming. Stock farming comes second in rank in the local economy. During the winter, Peuhl herders take the herds to pasture land. Unfortunately, fodder has dwindled in those areas owing to soil degradation and invasive Cordifolia (so-called Cordifolia AIDS). The number of cattle remains unknown. The area has 15 pasture areas, 34 drove corridors, 3 vaccination centers. Some of the pasture areas are in poor state and can’t accommodate large herds.
  • Trade, Transport, Crafts. Trade is almost totally informal and dependent on neighbouring Nigeria. It involves such products as gas, building materials and farm produce. It is more developed in the main village and remains in embryo elsewhere. A tarred road (RN1) runs across the community along some 55kms. Apart from the unpaved road between Liguido and the Nigeria boundary, there are very few dirt tracks.
    The seven markets all follow traditional customs and are devoid of modern equipment.
  • Crafts. They concern traditional activities, and involve potters, hairdressers, weavers, sculptors, cobblers, leatherwork, masons, tanners, tailors, butchers, bakers, carpenters…

    Social domain

  • Education. In 2005/2006 the commune had 61 primary schools totalling 131 classes, 6080 pupils and 120 teachers. The number of school age children is estimated at around 10,000 and will rise to 14,000 in 2015. Under 50% of the girls attend school. As for secondary education, there are 3 junior high schools (Dankassari, Goubey, Bawada Guida) and a fourth has just been created, enrolling 451 pupils.
  • Health : There are 4 (four) Integrated Health Centers (IHC), one of them operating now, and 13 (thirteen) health cabins among which eight are not in operation. Compared with the population of the community, the Integrated Health Centers alone cover an estimated 30.93% of the population.

Access to Water

Water is provided:

  • By small clean water mains, with a small water tower and pipes connecting to fountains where water runs from a tap, in built-up areas.
  • By drillings, generally equipped with hand pumps.
  • By wells, where water very often has to be drawn from 80 meters deep.

The number of people enjoying a decent water supply (12 liters per person per day) has risen from 50% in 2009 to 60% in 2011. A quarter of the population uses pumps. A system of local management overseeing maintenance and control has been implemented.

 

Related Articles

Archives