Mapping Rural Mobility in the Niakhar Area (Fatick Region, Senegal)

Abstract

Despite the development of information and communication technologies, mobility still remains an important factor in the development of the social capital, by promoting social interactions. However, rural African populations face more difficulties getting around than city dwellers. In addition, studies on mobility in Africa are relatively weak. In rural African areas, this ignorance of mobility is even more important. It is necessary to identify the characteristics and the spatial structure of mobility flows before starting any reflection on solutions, particularly in terms of spatial allocation of transport resources. Our main objective is to map the current movement flows in the Niakhar area. We chose to use the cartographic approach to analyze mobility flows. The data come from a survey carried out in 2018, as part of the French Institute of Research for Development (IRD) Niakhar Atlas project. For the data analysis, we used 4 methods: dominant flux method, net flux calculation method, directional mean statistics and areal interpolation. The results revealed differences in mobility behavior depending on the season and in space, and the existence of three dominant centers: Ngayokhème, Diohine and Toucar. They also made it possible to highlight the main directions of the flows and the scalar fields of mobility.