IVORY COAST – On July 1, 2024, Ivory Coast’s Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Adama Diawara, initiated the construction of a world-class laboratory focused on the circular economy.
This new facility, known as the “Central Innovation Laboratory,” marks a significant milestone in the country’s ongoing commitment to sustainable practices.
Ivory Coast has made strides towards adopting a circular economy for several years. The Central Innovation Laboratory is an initiative led by the African Centre of Excellence for Waste-to-Value (CEA-Valopro), located at the Institut National Polytechnique (INP-HB) in Yamoussoukro, the nation’s capital.
Yao Benjamin, the CEA-Valopro coordinator, highlighted the initiative’s educational aspect, stating, “Our aim is to build the capacity of African students and researchers by providing opportunities for practical learning and interdisciplinary collaboration while also ensuring the transfer of technology to communities for significant impact.”
The laboratory on a two-hectare site within INP-HB will feature state-of-the-art facilities and technologies.
It aims to foster innovation and cutting-edge research in the circular economy, a practice focused on extending product life cycles to reduce raw material consumption and waste production and promote waste recovery across various sectors, including agriculture, agro-industry, household, electronics, electrical, and plastics.
The 10-month project, funded by the Ivorian government through a loan from the French Development Agency (AFD) and supported by the World Bank, has garnered international support.
It also aims to combat climate change on the Ivory Coast by reducing methane emissions from landfill waste decomposition.
This new initiative is expected to significantly advance the country’s sustainability efforts and position Ivory Coast as a leader in the circular economy in Africa.
This development follows another initiative to support a circular economy in the country.
In May last year, the Coca-Cola Foundation of the American soft drink giant provided the Ivorian town of Bouaké with a plastic waste recycling plant.
The plant reduces pollution and created 20 direct jobs, particularly for women in the Gbêkë region.
Coliba Africa, a plastics processing company based in Abidjan, manages the facility. It allows the collection and processing of 600 tonnes of plastic bottles in conjunction with four sorting centers installed in containers.
Yaya Koné, the co-founder of the start-up at the time, said, “The bottles and other plastic objects will first go through a machine to be crushed, then washed to be decontaminated of dirt.
“We will get small particles called flakes that will be reprocessed and re-integrated into other factory materials. Then we will have semi-finished objects such as shoes.”
According to Mayor Nicolas Djibo, the aim is to improve sanitation and reduce pollution to make Ivory Coast’s second city more attractive.
The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the German international development cooperation agency, estimates that in this West African country, the daily production of waste per inhabitant is 0.64 kilograms.
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