Dahirou Pène, disabled, jeweler, communicator: The refusal of fate

In Ranérou, Dahirou Pène, living with a disability, does not go unnoticed. Jeweler, journalist, breeder, among other professions, he is the symbol of refusing fate, preferring to earn his bread by the sweat of his brow.

Jeweler, community relay, journalist, communicator, breeder: Dahirou Pène has several strings to his bow. Despite his disability contracted when he was one year old, he always refused to make it “an inevitability, but rather an opportunity”. He’s a jack of all trades. He tries almost everything. In Ranérou, just as in Matam, and even at the national level, he campaigns in several associations for the improvement of the living conditions and existence of people with disabilities and artisans, particularly jewelers, his core business.

Thanks to his activism, he was placed at the head of the branch of the Matam Chamber of Trades. During July 2025, Dahirou Pène went to a garage in Ranérou-Ferlo to carry out a task. At the scene, a benefactor gave him an offering, believing him to be a beggar. This gesture took him by surprise. After readily accepting the present, Dahirou Pène pointed out to him that he was not begging. He experienced similar situations several times. One day, he went to a bank branch in Fouta to open an account. When he was about to go through the front door, someone suddenly closed it. “The person thought I had come to beg, even though I had a million FCFA with me. I went to open my bank account in another branch there,” he says. In Ranérou, Dahirou Pène does not go unnoticed. He is known to everyone.

It’s a guide. He knows Ferlo inside and out. “Once in Ranérou, ask after him, he is well known,” whispers one of his cousins, based in Dakar. Indeed, Dahirou is a notable person in the department. He has excellent relationships with almost everyone. A blacksmith by birth, he did not limit himself to the trade learned from his father. He is a jack of all trades. He never begged, preferring to learn and make a living from his art, jewelry, as a worthy heir. He always believed in himself to the point of opening his workshop which allows him to feed his family.

Trust of peers

Signs of his disability began to appear at the age of one. Very quickly, Dahirou lost all his physical fullness. Since then, the jeweler, in his late fifties, has gone about his business on his wheelchair, with the support of his family. Dahirou Pène now manages his business from his wheelchair.

The fifty-year-old can even settle matters that an able-bodied man could not manage. During our stay, the “Soleil” team lived this experience with him. He is welcomed everywhere with a smile. “Dashirou Pène is a generous man. He supports us with selflessness,” testifies Mariame Sow, breeder and bajënu gokh. After the daara, he learned all the techniques and facets of jewelry from his father, who was a master in the field. “I learned everything from my father. I became a master in jewelry,” he rejoices. Born in Pikine (Dakar), Pène is the only one of his siblings to have followed in his father’s footsteps. In the past, the latter very often left Dakar to go to Ferlo, to Ranérou, in order to sell his gold objects (jewelry, earrings, rings, etc.). He stayed there periodically before returning to Dakar. Over time, his late father ended up settling there permanently, leaving part of his family in Dakar. The inhabitants of Ranérou welcomed him with open arms, because he perfectly mastered his art.

A few years later, Pène joined his father, who passed on to him all the characteristics of the profession. Before his death, the latter had even entrusted him with his clients and formulated wishes for him, convinced that he had become an ace in his art. “I had the sciences and techniques of blacksmithing,” he rejoices. Resourceful and ambitious, he very early joined numerous associations for the promotion of crafts and the development of Ranérou. His activism and commitment have made him head of the Ranérou departmental branch of the Chamber of Trades since 2012. Through this structure, he has participated in numerous fairs across the country, notably the Dakar International Fair (Fidak). Since then, he has intelligently managed the station and enjoyed the trust and respect of his peers.

Recently, it enabled eight artisans from Ranérou to benefit from funding from the General Delegation for Rapid Entrepreneurship of Women and Youth (Der/Fj). He also set up an association for the development of jewelers in Senegal, which he directs, with 585 members. This association aims to promote jewelry in Senegal with a view to establishing a National Gold Trading Post. This requires, according to him, a strengthening of the capacities of actors in the face of modernization and the domination of foreigners. “For this, we will have to organize ourselves for more training, in accordance with new technologies relating to forging, as well as the formalization of players in the sector,” he says, convinced of the need to adapt to technological developments in all areas.

Fierce advocate for people with reduced mobility

Departmental President of the National Federation of the Disabled of Senegal and of the Departmental Association of the Physically Disabled of Ranérou, Mr. Pène has never stopped fighting for the improvement of the living conditions and existence of this segment of the population. “Often, I take part in the Regional Development Committees (Crd) of Ranérou, but no system is provided to facilitate access to places for people with disabilities,” he laments.

However, this is not a constraint for this father and head of the family. The main thing, in his eyes, is to participate in meetings in order to make the voice of disabled people heard in general, but also that of artisans and grassroots development actors. According to him, President Macky Sall has made a lot of efforts in favor of people with reduced mobility, particularly through the social orientation law. “If we had applied the provisions of this law, the disabled person would be happy in our country,” he said. Unfortunately, much remains to be done for their well-being. Moreover, during the symbolic presentation of the equal opportunities card in 2015, he was one of the three beneficiaries who received their sesames from the hands of the former head of state of Senegal.

Passionate Pene

is also a community relay and participates in awareness campaigns and the fight against certain diseases carried out by the Ranérou health district. During our stay in this part of Ferlo, he served as our guide everywhere. “With selflessness and passion, he helps us a lot during our information and awareness campaigns against certain epidemics,” testifies the major of the Ranérou health center, Paul Bernard Tine. When he was young, he dreamed of doing journalism. Passionate, he then followed the great voices of radio, from Rfi to Senegalese Radiotelevision (Rts).

At the time, before the advent of cell phones, he shared his beliefs by correspondence with journalists from these radio stations about certain broadcasts or programs. This passion led him to journalism and communication. To this end, he hosted thematic programs on two community radio stations, notably in Ranérou and Doumga Wouro Alpha. He also collaborates with Radio Fulbé International (Rfi) by reporting in Pulaar. A politician, he campaigned in several parties, notably the Union for Democratic Renewal (Urd), the Alliance for the Republic (Apr) and the Republic of Values. He was a municipal councilor for 12 years under the banner of Renewal. He headed the Youth, Sports and Culture commission of the municipal council, then held the position of technical advisor to the president of the Ranérou Departmental Council in these areas. Today, this breeder has temporarily suspended his political activism to concentrate on his business and his profession. Certainly time to observe and choose…

By Souleymane Diam SY