Dakar, a Generation Restoration pilot city, implemented a project to design a metropolitan-scale greenbelt and blue-green network reconnecting ecosystems to curb sprawl and strengthen climate resilience. The project identified five sites for restoration work, and secured significant national momentum, including mobilizing over $410,000 for future restoration work.

About the city

Dakar is Senegal’s capital and largest city, with a metropolitan area population of over 4 million people. Built on the Cap-Vert Peninsula, Dakar is located on the westernmost point in Africa. It has a hot, semi-arid climate, with a long, dry, slightly cooler season and a short, humid, hot, and rainy season. Dakar’s economy is dominated by mining, farming, and fishing industries, and it is a cultural, economic, and political hub for the region. 

Local challenges

Dakar faces climate challenges including rising temperatures, the urban heat island effect, and severe flooding caused by extreme rainfall, which are projected to increase over time. Furthermore, coastal hazards such as seasonal flooding, sea level rise, and coastal erosion pose threats. Amidst these climate threats, Dakar struggles due to its rapid growth and urbanization. In spite of the rich natural resources and ecosystems in the area, many habitats have become fragmented and degraded due to urban growth, weakening the city’s natural defenses against climate threats. Furthermore, Dakar faces significant water supply challenges, while pollution and over-extraction lead to additional water stress. The pace of expansion has also strained the city’s capacity to provide adequate sanitation and infrastructure services, address water shortages and high urban temperatures, and protect critical ecosystems at its urban edges. As Dakar expands, it threatens to connect to Senegal’s third and sixth largest cities, Thiès and Mbour, now having already connected to the fourth largest city, Rufisque. 

Action through Generation Restoration

The Generation Restoration pilot project in Dakar aimed to develop a blue-green infrastructure network and a multifunctional greenbelt to restore connectivity between key natural sites in the region, contain urban sprawl by creating climate-resilient buffer zones, and generate sustainable economic opportunities based on the bioeconomy and circular economy.

To initiate and guide the project, a core team of international, multi-disciplinary experts was established, with participants from Senegal, France, the Gambia, and the United States. A preliminary task of the core team included the selection of priority sites in which to implement greenbelt and blue-green infrastructure activities. This was informed by site visits to gain an initial social and ecological understanding of the project context, and begin connecting with local stakeholders. 

The core team also began defining and collecting relevant ecological, climate, and socio-economic data on Dakar and the proposed project sites. As part of this effort, five thematic documents were produced related to regional issues, restoration techniques, and greenbelts in other parts of the world, among other themes. The team also mapped major stakeholders engaged in environmental issues, ongoing or planned major restoration and environmental projects in the Dakar metro area, and existing Nature-based Solution (NbS) success stories. 

A final selection of five sites was then made: Keur Massar and Guédiawaye, Mbeubeuss Landfill, Lac Rose, Ndayane and Popenguine, and Technopole. These sites were selected based on various criteria, including their biodiversity richness, ability to provide a diversity of essential ecosystem services, and potential for social inclusion. In addition, the selected sites are highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change and to growing pressures related to urban development dynamics and major investment decisions.

Following selection, field visits were conducted at each site. These visits provided opportunities for the team to engage with local elected and administrative authorities and to seek their engagement in the project. These visits also garnered important insights such as challenges faced, ongoing or future environmental projects, and identification of environmental leaders. 

From there, the team held a series of participatory workshops in the selected sites, bringing together local administrative and elected authorities, natural resource managers and civil society stakeholders. During the workshops, participants discussed their aspirations for desirable futures for Dakar and its surroundings, constraints for sustainable urban development, existing NbS that were considered successful, and solutions for current socio-environmental issues. Data collected from the workshops was then compiled to inform the design of the urban development model for the Dakar greenbelt, ensuring that the final design corresponds to local needs and realities. 

Project design and implementation were facilitated through a highly fruitful collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn). One highlight of the collaboration was a UPenn study visit to Dakar with 25 master’s students and 7 professors and practice consultants. The visiting group and the Dakar Generation Restoration coordination team comprised of multidisciplinary experts working together to provide on-site, critical research and innovative ideas to support the development of Dakar’s greenbelt and blue-green zones, while participating in training and bidirectional capacity building. Building on the successes of the previous workshops, additional participatory workshops were held with the visiting UPenn group, who were able to then integrate local perceptions and aspirations into project design. Additional collaborations and study visits were also held with graduate students from The University of California, Berkeley (14 students) and Harvard University (12 students).

The project team also organized two workshops under the auspices of the Ministry of Environment in Dakar, to present the project at the national level. The first workshop was attended by 133 participants, including administrative and local authorities, urban planning and development experts, civil society actors, academics, and other project stakeholders. The project team presented the results of the project, informing a wide range of actors about the project and its objectives. The event enabled the team to promote the potential advantages of a Dakar greenbelt and lobby for its high-level support.

From the national meeting, the team was invited to present the project and its findings before the Environment Commission of the Senegalese National Assembly, providing an opportunity to lobby for officially incorporating the Dakar greenbelt into the ongoing Great Green Wall initiative—an effort to restore 100 million hectares of degraded land across the African Sahel—and request additional funding from the national budget to continue the project. The second high level event was held in Dakar in December 2025 with 121 participants, and resulted in strengthened, multi-scale commitment and political buy-in for subsequent steps of the Dakar-Thiès greenbelt beyond the project lifespan. It also featured networking with other cities and capacity-building presentations from greenbelt leadership from Nouakchott, Mauritania; Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso; Niamey, Niger; and São Paulo, Brazil.

The team also presented the outputs of the project at three workshops in different locations throughout Dakar, convening local authorities and representatives of the population. These workshops were held to share the first propositions for restoration drafted by the UPenn students, receive local feedback to improve project design, and define next steps for project implementation. The final design for each of the five sites was then detailed in a project Prospectus document, which will serve as a blueprint for future implementation. In addition, efforts were also made to introduce this work to international audiences through dissemination at COP16 in Riyadh, the African Forum on Urban Forestry in Johannesburg, and the Nature in the City Conference at Sciences Po in Paris.

Main outcomes

The Generation Restoration pilot project in Dakar laid the foundation for implementing a greenbelt and blue-green infrastructure network in Dakar. Through site assessments, data collection, design, and thematic research, the project established a strong analytical foundation, and positioned itself for broader scale-up. 

A key outcome was the identification, detailed assessment, and the co-design of bankable solutions for five priority sites: Keur Massar and Guédiawaye, Mbeubeuss Landfill, Lac Rose, Ndayane and Popenguine, and Technopole. These sites were selected for their ecological value, vulnerability to climate and development pressures, and potential to deliver ecosystem services and social inclusion. Follow-up visits and consultations deepened engagement with local authorities and community actors, ensuring that site-level challenges, opportunities, and leadership structures were well understood.

The project was rooted in a multiscale participatory approach, ensuring that local perspectives, aspirations, and constraints were at the heart of project design, ensuring inclusivity and locally tailored solutions. Furthermore, multiple rounds of feedback were integrated in an iterative co-design process, resulting in a high-quality blueprint for greenbelt activities. Collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania further enriched the design process, combining international academic expertise with local knowledge. This was strengthened through the project’s guidance by the international, multidisciplinary core team, whose wide breadth of expertise supported the design of urban development models for Dakar, considering the insights of local populations and technical services.

The final presentation of the project at the national level was an important outcome that raised awareness of the project, garnered additional recommendations for project design, and galvanized participants to commit to further support and involvement. Notably, the event showcased the successful example of a greenbelt project in São Paulo, Brazil and an emerging collaboration between the two cities, leading to enthusiasm among high-level Senegalese decision makers around the idea of adopting an equivalent strategy for Dakar. Furthermore, the event resulted in the invitation to present the project and its findings before the Environment Commission of the National Assembly. 

Overall, the project team was able to raise over $410,000 in support for the broader implementation of the Dakar greenbelt project, and engaged a broad coalition of partners and international organizations, the Great Green Wall Initiative, and academic institutions in both Senegal and the United States.