Lambert Agodo

This study assesses how the Cotonou Stormwater Sanitation Programme (CPAP) affects wetland governance, biodiversity and livelihood dependence. A mixed approach combined semi-structured interviews, ecological inventories and spatial analyses. The programme is implemented in Cotonou and responds to SDG 6: safe drinking water and sanitation and SDG 11: sustainable cities and communities, which do not clearly take into account the use that local people make of the wetlands they use and manage. People use plant resources for food (37%), grazing domestic livestock (26%), medicine/medical magic (26%), handicrafts or wrapping ropes or leaves (9%), use of firewood (2%). The results show that 81.67% of respondents recognize customary institutions governing wetlands, while 76.67% report being excluded from formal planning processes. Participation remains limited in planning but increases in the implementation and monitoring phases. The landscape is highly urbanized (88.19%), with only 11.74% of natural wetlands remaining. Nevertheless, 45 species of plants and 25 species of birds have been recorded. To reverse this situation, it is necessary to involve people in the implementation of SDG 6 and 11 through the creation of local committees for the management of common pool-resources. These committees must consider different socio-cultural groups and genders and ensure the sustainability of resources. It would also be necessary to set up a Communication Plan and stop the commons grabbing processes via the implementation of the SDGs.

To restore soils degraded by unsuitable practices, which have led to declines in organic matter content and associated consequences, sustainable land management (SLM) practices have been implemented in central Benin. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of these practices on soil organic matter (SOM) levels in cultivated soils in Central Benin. Soil samples were collected from a depth of 0 to 20 cm on SLM plots in two agricultural areas: N’Tchon and Odjobilè. The SLM practices studied were maize intercropped with pigeon pea ( Cajanus cajan ), mucuna ( Mucuna pruriens ), soybean ( Glycine max ), cowpea ( Vigna unguiculata ), groundnut ( Arachis hypogea ), aeschynomene ( Aeschynomene histrix ), and cassava ( Manihot esculenta ). For each SLM practice, adjacent control plots were sampled. Soil pH, cation exchange capacity (CEC), soil organic carbon (SOC), carbon organic stock (COS), and particulate organic carbon (POC) were measured. Compared to the adjacent control plots, the soybean–maize and aeschynomene–maize rotations significantly increased soil CEC ( p < 0.05). SOC differed significantly ( p < 0.05) among SLM practices, ranging from 0.37 to 1.67 g/kg. COS was higher with pigeon pea–maize intercropping (37.21 Mg C ha ⁻¹ ) in Odjobilè and with cassava–maize intercropping (37.46 Mg C ha ⁻¹ ) in N’Tchon. The contribution of coarse particulate organic carbon (cPOM‐C) to total particulate organic carbon (tPOM‐C) was smaller than that of fine particulate organic carbon. The greatest cPOM‐C was observed with cowpea–maize and pigeon pea–maize intercropping. However, the greatest fPOM‐C was observed with cowpea–maize intercropping in Odjobilè and with pigeon pea–maize intercropping in N’Tchon. Therefore, SLM practices, such as intercropping with pigeon peas and maize, can serve as an alternative to crop residue burning. These practices can help restore the fertility of degraded soils.