In Gabon, the municipality of Libreville is taking a strong stand in the fight against household waste pollution. Since 3 October 2022, anyone who improperly packages and disposes of household waste is subject to a fine ranging from 500 to 50,000 CFA francs (from 0.76 to 76.3 euros).
Libreville is determined to put an end to household waste pollution. Its commitment is reflected in the implementation of local strategies. In the capital of Gabon, Order 0461/PE/CL/SG/DCAJC was signed on 3 October 2022 by Mayor Christine Mba Ndutume. This decision aims to regulate the management of household waste and defines the penalties applicable to the authors of related offences.
In its articles 5, 6, 7 and 8, the municipality of Libreville sets out the stages of conservation and elimination of household waste in this town of 857,000 inhabitants. Thus, households must imperatively package their waste in bin bags before depositing it in bins, skips or voluntary waste collection points (PAV) every day between 6 and 9 pm.
For the preservation of the environment
The municipality also provides for a fine ranging from 500 to 50,000 CFA francs (from 0.76 to 76.3 euros), or a penalty such as cleaning the area around the PAV, the bin, the skip or any other manual work proportional to the degree of the offence committed. In the event of a repeat offence, the penalty will be doubled, warn the local authorities.
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Failure to respect the timetable set by the municipality is also punishable by a fine of between 500 and 50,000 CFA francs (0.76 to 76.3 euros). The same penalties are imposed on anyone who throws, deposits or abandons household waste on the public highway, public places, water basins and beaches or who burns it. The same applies to anyone who urinates or deposits faecal matter on the public highway.
The aim is to make the people of Libreville aware of their responsibilities in the face of growing pollution in the municipality and thus to protect the environment. The situation has become more acute in the last three years with the departure of the Lebanese company Averda, which was responsible for waste collection in the Gabonese capital. The contract signed in 2014 by the Dubai-based company in the United Arab Emirates bound the Clean Africa company paid by the Gabonese state to rid Libreville of its waste.
Inès Magoum
