‘What Use Is A Fisherman Who Can No Longer Fish?'

Senegal’s fishermen are now vying for survival and a future out of poverty, beyond the shores of their home country.

- Peace Hyde

MOR DIOUF FELT A COLD chill in the air, not as a result of the night temperature, but on account of the perilous journey, he was about to embark on.

The 21-year-old Senegalese was boarding a boat along with a group of illegal migrants, desperate to escape impoverished conditions in St. Louis, a bustling fishing town in northern Senegal, to Europe, where their dreams of a better life could finally be realized.

The price of admission; CFA36,000 ($60), a hefty sum Diouf barely managed to scrape together from a combination of personal savings from fishing and a loan from his aunt, who dabbles between selling fish in the local market and house cleaning for expatriates in the country.

The boat was full to capacity. “I think there were about 100 people on the boat,” recalls Diouf.

Over on the deck, young men were hanging carelessly on rusted rails, vying desperately for every inch of space they could hold on to. On the floors of the main cabin, Diouf could see women, some with their young infants, clutching each other desperately for emotional support and praying silently, as the boat sputtered and jerked angrily into the darkness. The mood was somber and even though everybody had heard about the risks associated with this journey, they allowed themselves one last chance to feel the hope of a brighter future.

A future out of poverty, beyond the shores of Senegal. But it was not to be.