Cote d’Ivoire is gearing up for the Africa-France Summit scheduled for June 2020 in Bordeaux, France, which will focus on the theme of sustainable cities and territories.
This summit is expected to bring together more than 15,000 stakeholders from African and French cities, 500 exhibitors and more than 1,000 African entrepreneurs.
This important meeting led by French President Emmanuel Macron and which, for the first time will bring together African and French political and economic actors, to act and commit to the sustainable city of tomorrow, is a platform for reflection on the new challenges of sustainable development.
It will insist on ways to develop new sustainable partnerships with the shared ambition of co-building sustainable, innovative, fertile and frugal urban ecosystems, while accelerating the structuring of the sustainable economic sector, say organizers in a note.
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On the shores of the Ebrie Lagoon, the “Rencontres d’Abidjan” will take place on February 27-28, 2020 and is expected to gather together African city officials in the Ivorian economic capital, in order to prepare for the Africa-France 2020 Summit.
Ministers in charge of the City and Urban Development of French-speaking African countries, local elected officials, representatives of civil society and start-ups will attend the meeting, to exchange and share experiences in building “sustainable and intelligent cities.”
An Integrated City
The vision of the Ivorian State is to promote integrated cities that take into account all the amenities of modern and functional cities, with technological innovations, including among others, naturally ventilated houses with natural light.
Cote d’Ivoire wants to enhance the energy mix in buildings. This should help settle people in a green economy and lead them to couple conventional energy with solar energy (solar panels).
For urban mobility, the Ivorian state should, with the help of France, build an urban train called ‘Le Metro d’Abidjan.’ The government has also opened up the lagoon transport sector, which has seen the arrival of new operators.
Cote d’Ivoire is in the process of recycling waste, which has led to the closure of the Akouedo landfill site in eastern Abidjan. Another modern landfill, which will include recycling activities, was opened in Kossihouen, near the Northern Highway, located 26 km from Abidjan.
“With such a waste recycling component, we are considering ways to set up a circular economy, including all plastic, ferrous and organic materials, such as used oils, to see how to organize the market for all this waste,” Dr. Alain Serge Kouadio , Director of Green Economy at the Ivorian Ministry of the Environment and Sustainable Development suggests.
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The objective is to ensure that “waste is no longer waste, but rather raw materials to make other products,” he goes on, expressing confidence that initiatives are underway with Nestlé, which has initiated a project in partnership with the Ministry for the recycling of plastic waste.
Many initiatives are underway in the production of cobblestones. He adds that a Japanese company has started a study on used batteries for their recycling them. However, the State intends to put in place a coherent and integrated framework that will involve all stakeholders.
AP/ls/Dng/te/fss/abj/APA