Rice harvest in Diawar

Senegal, 2019

It’s July and rice harvest season in Diawar, northern Senegal. Both the inhabitants’ diet and the economy of the village rely largely on the precious cereal. The area is very arid due to the proximity with the Sahara desert. And yet an ingenious irrigation system consisting of canals deriving from river Senegal, the natural border between the eponymous country and Mauritania, allows the crop to thrive.  While some families own a combine-harvester, most villagers are still working with a sickle. The task is laborious and compounded by the tremendous heat, the itching, and the pressure to improve the yield of the crops.