Ministerial inspection in Pointe-Noire
Under a hot coastal sun, Minister of Urban Sanitation, Local Development and Road Maintenance Juste Désiré Mondelé walked the dusty perimeter of the future central market Ndji-Ndji this week, checking progress with Pointe-Noire mayor Evelyne Tchitchelle and department officials by his side.
The inspection, part of a wider tour of key construction sites, aimed to ensure the facilities promised in 2017 will be delivered within what the minister called a “reasonable timeframe”, allowing traders to leave temporary stalls and return to covered, regulated premises.
Inside the Ndji-Ndji upgrade
Ndji-Ndji is designed as the city’s flagship commercial hub, with two three-storey blocks offering nearly 5,000 market bays, chilled storage rooms, a medium-sized supermarket, and upper-floor restaurants overlooking the Atlantic breeze, according to the Italian contractor Franco Villarecci overseeing the build.
Ground level stalls have been fitted with washable counters, drainage grids and modern lighting to meet current hygiene codes, while reinforced walkways are expected to ease the daily flow of close to 20,000 shoppers that municipal planners forecast for the site once it is operational.
Sanitation and roadworks enter final lap
Project engineers say the structural phase is finished and crews are now focusing on sanitation works, installing gutters, inspection traps and fat separators so that stormwater and market effluent can be directed into the city’s main network without overloading nearby households.
Roger Ondzié, whose bureau is responsible for technical control, told reporters that raising the surrounding access roads is central to the final checklist, because existing lanes submerge during heavy rains and undermine earlier paving efforts.
Responding, Minister Mondelé ordered the immediate clearance of vendors and materials along the large avenue skirting Ndji-Ndji so that storm drains can be unclogged and a fresh asphalt topcoat laid before the seasonal downpours expected later this year.
Vendors eager for modern space
Traders watching the visit broke into applause at the announcement, shouting that an improved roadway would shorten morning deliveries from the fishing port and reduce the dust clouds that cover produce crates during the dry season.
Patricia Costa, currently selling spices in the temporary Grand Market, said she checks progress weekly and has already saved for a stainless-steel counter to meet the expected hygiene rules, because, in her words, “customers buy faster when everything looks clean and bright”.
Tié-Tié Market of Peace catches up
A similar sense of anticipation surrounds the Market of Peace in Tié-Tié, third district of Pointe-Noire, where construction crews are installing the final roof sheets and plumbing lines before electrical testing begins, according to site foreman Alain Ndzalou.
Though smaller than Ndji-Ndji, the Tié-Tié facility will still host more than 1,200 selling points, built around a naturally ventilated courtyard that engineers say should keep midday temperatures several degrees cooler than improvised sidewalk markets.
Minister Mondelé praised the on-site teams for maintaining pace despite supply chain difficulties linked to international shipping costs, telling them the project is “about dignity for vendors and comfort for families who depend on affordable food every single day”.
Economic ripple expected citywide
Local economists view the dual-market programme as a stimulus for small enterprise, arguing that organised stalls with power, water and security will lower wastage and attract micro-credit schemes, particularly for young entrepreneurs entering the fresh-produce and catering segments.
The municipal council has already drafted a schedule of fees promising preferential rates for cooperatives and women’s associations, while digital payment kiosks are earmarked to help reduce cash handling and lighten the work of tax collectors.
Infrastructure upgrades extend beyond the market walls: water company crews are relaying pipes along adjoining streets, and the electricity utility is planning an additional transformer so stalls can refrigerate fish overnight without relying on diesel generators that elevate running costs and noise pollution.
Clean streets and smart services ahead
During his stay, the minister also accepted a consignment of sanitation vehicles and equipment offered by the Japanese government, including skip loaders and mechanised sweepers that will be deployed first around the two markets to maintain the cleaner image demanded by inspectors.
With finishing touches under way, municipal authorities are now drafting relocation calendars so vendors can move in block by block, limiting disruption to city food supply; if weather cooperates, the mayor’s office believes customers could be browsing the new stalls before year-end.
City planners intend to link both markets to the upcoming public bus corridor, allowing commuters from Loandjili, Mongo and Hinda to reach the stalls in under twenty minutes; smart screens at the entrances will display real-time bus arrivals, weather alerts and municipal price bulletins.
A pilot digital registry, already tested at the container port, will assign each vendor a QR code tied to health-certificate renewals and tax payments, a system officials say could cut paperwork queues by half and position Pointe-Noire as a reference for modern market management in Central Africa.