Before now, Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon, held its breath every rainy season. Floods were rife, bringing with them water-borne diseases and sometimes death. In this city where the population has tripled over the last 25 years, a solution was urgently needed.
The second phase of the Yaoundé Urban Sanitation Project, financed with $32.352 million by the African Development Bank Group, through its concessional financing window, the African Development Fund (ADF), has been providing long-awaited relief since it was completed in 2021.
Under the project, a total of 20 kilometres of asphalt-lined canals were constructed along the banks of the Mfoundi River and its tributaries, which cross the city; while another 16 kilometers of canals benefited from improvement works. Crossing points and access ramps were also erected, as well as pilot infrastructure for unloading and treating faecal sludge and wastewater. In parallel, the project helped train staff of the Yaoundé Urban Community and its seven municipal districts, bolstering their capacity to set up pre-collection and waste-sorting platforms.
The project's achievements have demonstrated that strategic investment in sanitation can generate rapid and measurable impacts on public health, the local economy, and urban resilience. In a country heavily affected by malaria, typhoid fever, and diarrheal diseases, sanitation is proving to be a major lever for preventing disease. Health data shows a marked drop in waterborne diseases between 2011 and 2021. The prevalence of diarrhoea fell from 2.7 percent to 0.41 percent, cholera from 3.06 percent to 0.008 percent, reflecting the concrete impact of the project's investments in sanitation, prevention and health system strengthening. Also, by redeveloping health centres and raising awareness about hygiene, the project has helped provide long-term relief for the municipal health system.
"We are seeing a significant decrease in environment-related diseases. They are less frequent and less severe than before," says Dr Paul Eloundou Onomo, Director of the Efoulan District Hospital, located in the 3rd district of Yaoundé.
The project has helped develop the banks of the city's Mfoundi River and its tributaries, laying the foundations for a modern and resilient urban sanitation system, and improving the living spaces of more than two million people.
The project's main innovation lies in direct community involvement. Ensuring that the new infrastructure is well-maintained has become a communal instinct. A citizen movement has emerged, in which residents are transformed into guardians of the community's well-being and security.
In Yaoundé's 1st district, the construction work was closely supervised by district head Abraham Ambassa Bienvenu. "My role in the neighbourhood is to protect the population," he says. "I set out the action plan and ensure it is implemented without delay. It is important to educate residents on cleaning water points to prevent mosquito breeding, which is why we undertake regular clean-ups before and after the rainy season."
The results of the interventions are tangible today: a city now much better equipped to cope with climate shocks. The floods that punctuated urban life have significantly decreased. "In the city centre, we went from 15 to three floods per year," says Gérard Essi Ntoumba, project coordinator. He adds that this breakthrough has led to a significant reduction in property damage.
Today, the banks of the Mfoundi have become a very different space: they now attract people who live and move around with greater satisfaction.
Thanks to the Yaoundé City Sanitation Project, the capital city is in a transition to a safer, healthier and more inclusive city. "We can clearly see that Yaoundé is changing for the better. For those of us who live there, this transformation makes a real difference on a daily basis," says Dr Onomo.
