GCO transports recovered mineral sand by train from its site in Diogo to the Autonomous Port of Dakar – a 140km journey.

As rail traffic was halted on this line between 1994 and 2014, communities have settled along some parts of the right-of-way, while other parts see unauthorized and uncontrolled crossings.

The villages crossed by the railroad (Mékhé, Méouane, Pire, and Tivaouane, among others) are familiar with all of these issues, which of course lead to new, more serious risks.

GCO prioritizes the safety of its employees and of the surrounding communities. Accordingly, it has initiated a major awareness-raising campaign on rail safety, with the slogan “Working together for a safer railroad.”

This campaign primarily targets students whose schools are located near the railway line.

The teams at GCO have met with the communities affected to urge caution and to foster the prevention of risks posed by the train. The goal is to teach the students and their parents about proper safety procedures when dealing with the dangers of rail traffic.

In addition to the risk management aspect of this initiative, GCO has decided to redouble its efforts in the areas affected through a community-oriented, CSR approach.

As part of this approach, GCO is committed to implementing railway risk mitigation strategies. These strategies include:

  • Installing safety fences along the railway
  • Reorienting the doors at schools less than 25 meters from the railway
  • Installing fencing around all schools near the railway
  • Recruiting 20 community outreach workers for two months in all of the villages affected by the railway in order to teach the communities about the importance of pedestrian walkways, railroad crossings, and boundary markings along the right-of-way
  • Revitalizing local monitoring and reporting committees to deal with rail-related incidents and accidents
  • Developing an external communication plan to raise GCO’s visibility and emphasize the train’s importance
  • Permanently resolving issues related to the monitoring of railroad crossings, the position of the traffic signs, and the lighting used on high-traffic railroad crossings.

Other special technical measures will be carried out to foster good relations between GCO and local people, in order to ensure the safety of the local community, particularly the students in the French and Koranic schools.

A communication kit with display panels and a comic book for the students has been developed to facilitate the understanding of preventive measures, in order to save lives and protect the integrity of GCO’s railway infrastructure.

 

The safety of our employees and host communities is our daily priority!