Pre-collectors of household waste: Operating mode, failures and insalubrity in Cocody (Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire)

Abstract

The collection and disposal of urban solid waste is a daily and major concern of urban centers in Africa. The residential commune of Cocody, like many others in the Abidjan metropolis, is no exception to this reality. Poor waste management remains one of the environmental problems facing this city. Faced with the impotence of managers in this sector to assume their role of integral collection, alternative pre-collection solutions are proposed by private actors. The operating method consists of taking solid waste from households in neighborhoods that are not or poorly served by collection vehicles. However, the organization and operation of this palliative solution is not always well structured. In the light of this reality, this article aims to analyze the activity of pre-collecting garbage in Cocody. In terms of methodology, we have favored documentary research and a field survey of a sample of agents in the field. The study reveals that the majority of the private actors in this system, although organized as cooperatives, are regularly confronted with enormous structural and political difficulties. A little more political will is therefore needed, focused on the creation of a regulatory framework for the management of this sector. Finally, it is more than necessary to put special emphasis on communication and social marketing. This latter approach has the effect of inducing a change in behavior on the part of the stakeholders, i.e. the populations, who could thus benefit from a healthy, harmonious living environment in a sustainable manner.