Frontières et activités marchandes en Afrique de l’Ouest : logiques d’acteurs et fonctionnement scalaire

This article aims to study the impact of the state border on market activities highlighting the practices of commercial players, the logic of action that determine and their impacts on border landscapes. It is based on the investigations results, as part of a thesis, with 660 dealers and 340 customers in 13 loumo border regions Senegal- Gambia and Senegal- Guinea. On these border areas is intense cross-border trading activity supported by the merchants and consumers from border differential operation as the change in prices, exchange rates, the existence of taxes (so economic logic ), and proximity and accessibility (logical utility).Thus , the market mobility results in a scalar operation of commercial spaces . Peasant- traders , retailers and wholesalers articulate different geographical levels from local to transnational through the regional and the national. This creates merchants territories consist of different commercial scene but are moving under the influence of cyclical factors. This spatial continuity - connection is centered loumo and border towns, landmarks of market activity.In addition, market practices result in the appearance of smuggling routes, the development of villages and warehouses socio-spatial mutation border shopping areas. These commercial practices and their spatial implications, however, are more intense on the Senegal-Gambia border that Senegal-Guinea border where disparities are smaller and less numerous exchange media.