Cotonou, as in all major coastal cities, is exposed to rising waters. Experts and institutions in charge of the issue of global warming monitor and alert on the issue. The economic capital of Benin is indeed threatened, because the water is eating away at the ground.
3 mins
With our correspondent in Cotonou, Jean-Luc Apollon
Beninese oceanographers and experts working on climate change are paying attention. For them, there is no doubt: a threat hangs over the city of Cotonou, the economic capital of the country. Because in the decades to come, the sea level will rise, there is no doubt.
Oceanographer Zacharie Sohou, from theInstitute of Halieutic and Oceanological Research of Beninshares this opinion: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicted that sea level would rise 50 centimeters by 2050 and two meters by 2100he warns. This is due to global warming. And we noticed that it’s four meters on average for coastal erosion. If we don’t maintain constant efforts, Cotonou will no longer exist within 50 years, or will be pushed back to the center. »
Read alsoGabon: rising sea levels, a concern of African Climate Week
Worry every rainy season
Among the causes, the oceanographer cites floods in particular. Each rainy season is dramatic for certain sectors, such as Vossa, a popular district of Cotonou. The short season in September seems to have started and there is already anxiety there.
” By September 15 or 16, you won’t be able to come here, the river is advancing rapidly, there are people leaving their homes, leaving beds, leaving a lot of things. Last year, when it happened, we had a lot of loss of life “, laments a resident.
” I’m a mechanic, I can’t even work, I’m going back to Gbédjromede [un quartier de Cotonou, NDLR] to look for places for two months. When the water recedes, I will return to my place. All this causes pain “Bounces another.
A program launched against coastal erosion
For Zacharie Souhou, the responsible is not to be looked far, it is the Man: ” Many people are installed on the water circuitsexposes the oceanographer. If we manage to evacuate all the water circuits, the water could circulate normally and go towards the ocean. It is men who have caused these problems. If we hadn’t attacked nature, we would have suffered flooding problems in Cotonou. »
The authorities have been mobilized on the subject since 2012, with a program against coastal erosion in Benin. A dozen groynes, devices used to play with the sediments of the sea to slow erosion, were erected initially.
When he came to power in 2016, Beninese President Patrice Talon launched a plan worth more than 50 billion CFA francs, again against coastal erosion. Is it sufficient ? In Benin, the watch must be permanent, the inhabitants must also take an interest in the problem, otherwise they could turn into climate refugees, confides an actor involved in the fight against global warming.
Read alsoClimate migration: in Africa, “movements will rather take place within countries”