Mayotte Continues its Urban Renovation Program in Kawéni for a Sustainable Future

Endowed with a budget of 27 million EUR, Mayotte is undertaking a major urban renovation project in Kawéni, aiming to revitalize the school zones.

Since 2016, the Kawéni urban renovation project in Mayotte has been at the heart of discussions and steering committees. However, the first concrete steps were slow to materialize. Nevertheless, the arrival of Olivier Kremer, director of the Directorate for the Environment, Planning, Housing and the Sea (DEALM), in September 2020, accelerated the search for common ground with the mayor of Mamoudzou, led by Ambdilwahedou Soumaila, finally launching the New Urban Renewal Program (NPRU) of Kawéni.

With a total investment of 151 million EUR, the Kawéni NPRU began in May 2021 with the implementation and inauguration of the first phase, the SPPM (Société des produits à parfums de Mayotte) square adjacent to the Youth and Culture House (MJC) of Kawéni, a program worth 3.5 million EUR. The second phase, which has just begun, concerns the school zone and represents an investment of 27 million EUR. A third phase is planned for Kawéni village. The main objective of this second phase is to equip the Kawéni school zone with facilities suitable for its 11,000 students, including approximately 4,000 in primary schools and about 7,000 in middle and high schools. Thus, several buildings and facilities will be constructed, including a sports facility comprising a dojo, a table tennis room, a climbing wall, an artistic practice workshop, a boarding school of excellence with 200 beds and 5 staff accommodations, a school catering hub with a central kitchen and an application hotel at the polyvalent high school. To combat frequent flooding affecting school establishments, a requalification of the stormwater network is planned, as well as a « coolness island » to promote greening. In an inclusive approach, an 8,000 m² « mall » (a pedestrian path along a bus route) will also be developed to connect the Geôle neighborhood to Kawéni village, thus covering 13 Ha of public spaces and a 2 Ha park. Furthermore, a residence for young active people will be built to meet the needs of younger generations.

A crucial aspect of the NPRU is the preservation of public money and the search for partnerships to support investments. Thus, the second phase of the Kawéni urban renovation program will be funded to the tune of 6.9 million EUR by the National Agency for Urban Renewal (ANRU), 8.1 million EUR by the City of Mamoudzou, 9.4 million EUR by FEADER, 2.2 million EUR by FEDER and 340,000 EUR by the departmental council. These funds are in addition to the investment of the rectorate, which exceeds the ANRU program and amounts to 70 million EUR for this school zone.

This project also allows Mayotte to consider better use of school infrastructures outside school hours. Rector Jacques Mikulovic proposes sharing classrooms and equipment to make them available outside of school time, to better support student education.

Mias Sylvia