Prevalence of respiratory diseases

Air is a vital element. Today, it is the cause of death in megacities. Most of the world’s major cities are home to a large number of industries and dense road traffic, whose gaseous emissions have a negative impact on air quality (Halek et al. 2010; Tan et al. 2011). Many gaseous substances and respirable particulate materials are frequently released into the air from fixed or mobile sources. Studies have shown that the quantitative and/or qualitative presence of certain gases and particles suspended in the air degrades its quality and affects human health and the environment (Forsberg 2005). In Côte d’Ivoire, in recent years, the public authorities have made industrialisation one of the essential links in the development chain, after the success of agriculture. But the implementation of this policy sometimes poses environmental problems. The district of Abidjan, particularly the commune of Yopougon, concentrates a large proportion of economic and industrial activities.