TITLE:
Resource-Use Conflicts in the Bamboung Marine Protected Area (Fatick, Senegal)
AUTHORS:
Thierno Diop, Cheikh Oumar Samb, Alioune Badara Diop, Lamine Fall, Ousmane Cisse, Cheikhou Diouf, Paul Scholte
KEYWORDS:
Bamboung Marine Protected Area, Conflict, Management Committee, Natural Resources, Senegal, Surveys, Stakeholders
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Ecology,
Vol.16 No.2,
February
12,
2026
ABSTRACT: Against a backdrop of restrictions on the exploitation of fishery resources in the Bamboung Marine Protected Area (BMPA) established in village territories, this study analyses the characterisation of conflicts between the various stakeholders around this Marine Protected Area (MPA) in Senegal. The methodological approach consisted of semi-structured surveys of specific socio-professional categories and local administrative services, and the surveys were carried out on a sample of 100 people. The surveys focused on the socio-economic structure of the respondents and the relationships that exist between these different groups of players, the players involved in the governance of natural resources in the area, the types of conflicts that exist and the methods used to resolve them around the BMPA. The results showed a predominance of fishermen (35%) and women processors (29%) in the study area. The devastation of food crops (33%) and land conflict (22%) are the most important sources of conflict over natural resources, according to surveys. This devastation of crops is mainly caused by wildlife, and the main wildlife species responsible for the damage are monkeys, granivorous birds, baboons and warthogs. The spatial distribution of these species varied significantly between villages (p-value