Podor – IOM, the UN Migration Agency, with support from the Government of the United States, and in collaboration with the Senegalese authorities, organized a mass displacement simulation exercise in Podor, northern Senegal (21/04).

The exercise aimed to prepare the population and local actors along the Senegal – Mauritania border in Podor to respond to a potential crisis, by strengthening cooperation and communication between border communities, local authorities, security forces and health and rescue services.

“The involvement of the population shows that the ‘Army-Nation’ concept [a trusting relationship between the Army and the population] is a reality in Podor,” said Mamoudou Wone, General Secretary at the Podor Mayor’s Office, who supervised ground operations. “Managing a crisis of this magnitude requires a joint effort between all actors, and each actor has successfully played their role in this exercise.”

Three crisis simulations have already been organized in real-life conditions in the regions of Matam (February 2016), Saint Louis (November 2016), and Tambacounda (December 2017). After the first exercise in Matam, a specific emergency response plan at the borders was developed and subsequently tested in the next exercises. The simulation exercise in Podor was thus a chance to put into practice lessons learned during previous exercises.

This exercise is part of the second phase of the project Engaging Border Communities in Border Security and Management in Senegal (Engagement des communautés frontalières dans la gestion et la sécurisation des frontières au Sénégal) funded by the US Government and implemented by IOM in partnership with the Government of Senegal.

Millions of people are displaced in West Africa due to the security situation and instability in neighbouring countries. In North-East Nigeria alone, over 2.4 million people were forced to flee their homes in recent years.

For more information please contact Massimo Ramanzin at IOM Senegal: Email: mramanzin@iom.int, Tel: +221 33 869 62 00,