Decent housing, easier daily travel, smarter waste management, flood prevention and new job opportunities: the shift toward sustainable cities could reshape living conditions for millions. In Cotonou, the fourth edition of the International Forum on Living Environment (FIC), which wrapped up on 10 October 2026, brought these issues into sharp focus, highlighting how urban development can balance environmental protection, economic progress and the essential needs of citizens.
Across Benin, as in many African nations, the future of cities is tied to their ability to answer the everyday concerns of residents. Finding adequate housing, moving around more easily, living in a cleaner environment or being less exposed to flooding — these are the challenges that place territorial planning at the heart of development policy.
It was against this backdrop that the fourth edition of the International Forum on Living Environment took place in Cotonou from 8 to 10 October 2026. Organised around the theme “Economy of African territories: accelerating the transition to carbon sobriety,” the gathering explored the possibilities offered by an urban development model that is more respectful of the environment and better suited to African realities.
Beyond discussions on cutting carbon emissions, the real question is how to turn the ecological transition into a driver of tangible improvements in daily life. A sustainable city is not defined solely by its infrastructure or environmental performance, but also by its capacity to offer residents a healthier, more accessible and safer living environment.
Better-planned cities to make everyday life easier
The quality of living conditions depends first on how urban spaces are organised. When housing, workplaces, schools and essential services are poorly distributed, travel becomes longer and more expensive. Conversely, coherent urban planning can help bring services closer to people and facilitate their daily activities.
Improving mobility is therefore a key issue for Beninese cities. User-friendly facilities, better organisation of travel and consideration for pedestrians and public transport can help make urban areas more functional.
The project dedicated to the Fifa bus stop, led by Willson Edwin Mardochet ADJOVI and Mohamed BAYDOUN, was among the initiatives recognised during the hackathon held alongside FIC 2026. This proposal illustrates young people’s interest in concrete mobility and urban planning challenges.
The challenge now is to encourage solutions that can meet users’ needs while taking into account technical, financial and environmental constraints. Better-designed mobility can, in time, help reduce certain daily difficulties and improve access to essential services.
Sustainable housing: an economic and social issue
Housing represents another pillar of improving living conditions. For households, the quality of a home is measured as much by its solidity as by its comfort, its adaptation to climate conditions and the costs it generates over time.
In this perspective, promoting local materials is a path worth exploring. Their use, when based on quality criteria and appropriate standards, can support national production chains and encourage the development of local skills in the construction sector.
This orientation can also open economic opportunities, particularly for craftsmen, building companies and material producers. However, its benefits for households will depend on several factors, including production costs, resource availability, the quality of works and their durability.
At the forum’s closing, the Director General of Construction and Housing, Ismaïl YASSO, stressed the need to standardise and certify local materials. This approach is essential to strengthen user confidence and promote the integration of these materials into construction practices.
The goal is to promote housing suited to the country’s realities, without separating sustainability requirements from concerns about cost and accessibility.
Preventing floods and cleaning up neighbourhoods
The effects of inadequate planning also show through difficulties in draining rainwater, waste accumulation and sanitation problems. For residents of exposed neighbourhoods, these situations can disrupt travel, weaken homes and degrade living conditions.
Integrated urban planning — taking into account land tenure, infrastructure, flood risks and ecosystem preservation — therefore appears indispensable. It helps anticipate constraints and coordinate interventions rather than treating problems in isolation.
Wastewater management is, in this respect, an important issue. The project presented by Nelly Mahouna GBAGUIDI and Meryl AGNIKPE, rewarded during the FIC hackathon, reflects the interest in this problem.
Adapted solutions could help improve neighbourhood sanitation and limit polluting discharges into the environment. Their effectiveness will, however, depend on their implementation, the resources mobilised and the organisation of the services responsible for their operation and maintenance.
Waste management and the preservation of natural spaces contribute to the same ambition: building cities where environmental concerns translate into visible benefits for populations.
Carbon sobriety: an opportunity for the local economy
The transition to carbon-sober territories is not limited to reducing the environmental impact of human activities. It can also foster the emergence of new economic activities in sustainable construction, recycling, sanitation and the valorisation of local resources.
These sectors are likely to generate jobs and strengthen national skills. The participation of young people in the FIC hackathon illustrates, in this regard, the innovation potential of new generations facing urban challenges.
But ideas must be able to move beyond competitions and professional gatherings. Financing, technical support and project maturation are essential steps to transform proposals into genuinely useful services or infrastructure.
This is precisely one of the points raised by Ismaïl YASSO, who insisted on the need for sufficiently prepared projects to facilitate access to funding. Carbon sobriety can thus become a lever for economic development, provided its benefits are assessed on the basis of concrete achievements.
From forum to reality: the post-FIC challenge
The tree-planting event organised at the Fidjrossè public primary school ahead of the forum’s closing served as a reminder that transforming living conditions can also begin at the neighbourhood and school level. Such initiatives help raise citizens’ awareness of protecting natural heritage, even if their effects depend on follow-up and plant maintenance.
At the end of this fourth edition, the Minister of Living Environment and Transport, Georges ALE, called on participants to translate the recommendations from the proceedings into precise actions, with clearly defined responsibilities and resources.
This call highlights the main challenge of FIC 2026: ensuring continuity between the discussions initiated and the transformations expected on the ground. For populations, results will have to be measured through tangible improvements, whether in access to housing, mobility, sanitation or the reduction of environmental risks.
In Benin, the ambition of sustainable cities will only take on its full meaning if it translates into a perceptible improvement in living conditions. The success of this approach will depend on the ability of public authorities, local governments, economic actors and citizens to turn the forum’s orientations into feasible, accessible and sustainable projects. Because, beyond carbon sobriety, the real challenge remains building cities that are more pleasant to live in, where development directly benefits populations.