More than a half of African energy comes from gas cylinders, paraffin, diesel, coal and firewood.

Africa is worth little in energy. More than a half of the continent is switched off. We have just to look at the lights during the night, from a satellite, to realize its darkness and poverty in energy.

In Africa access to energy is a privilege: while in rural areas poverty is worsened by the keen and hollow search for energy sources, the future urban situation, with a tenfold population, will be a real challenge.

On the other hand, looking at the problem of waste, we can see a positive element: an average citizen in Africa daily produces about 0.3/0.8 kg of waste, against a western average citizen who produces 1.4 kg a day.

But, anyway, there is a big problem: a correct waste management is almost inexistent in African cities.

Some of the biggest damage caused by inadequate waste management is represented by dumpsites, which lie near watercourses: lots of rivers are seriously polluted and those development opportunities that water could offer to cities are reduced.

Even in this case, if dumpsites were created and managed with awareness, they could represent an investment for citizens’ and towns’ wellness.

Unfortunately, it seems like this process has not been swung into action yet, and dumpsites are not becoming occasions for improvement, but instead places where men, women and children work under organized crime, to collect and illegally sell stuff that can be useful for trade.

The road is still long.