Authorities in Abidjan (the economic capital and largest city of Côte d'Ivoire) have been defending a two-year urban renewal campaign that includes banning street vendors, prohibiting begging, and demolishing informal settlements — measures that have drawn significant criticism from residents. District Governor Ibrahim Cissé Bacongo defended the programme, announcing plans to replace displaced street vendors with covered, taxable metal stalls, and outlining further 2026 projects such as road clearances in the Port-Bouët district and the construction of a giant aquarium. Demolitions of precarious neighbourhoods have been temporarily suspended while authorities launch an awareness campaign, though officials say the clearances have already reduced flood-related casualties, with some 30,000 replacement housing units planned at a cost of 17.7 billion CFA francs.