GIS-Based Multi-Criteria Analysis for Selecting Suitable Areas for Urban Green Spaces in Abomey-Calavi District, Southern Benin

Abstract

Green spaces contribute to a significant improvement in quality of life and maintain the sustainability of cities. In Benin, despite the political willingness regarding greening, municipalities are experiencing technical issues in finding suitable spaces to achieve this goal. This study should therefore be applicable to many other towns in Benin. It aims at identifying suitable areas for green spaces to integrate landscaping into urban planning in Abomey-Calavi district. Multi-criteria analysis combining GIS and the hierarchical classification approach was performed. Six factors (land use, altitude, slope, distance from main roads, proximity to urban centres and distance from flood zones, water bodies) were combined using the ArcGIS “Spatial Analysis” extension to generate a map of green space suitability. The results show large areas of land, of which 23.27% is very suitable and 26.06% is suitable for landscaping in this municipality. The ranking of the factors revealed that elevation, proximity to road networks, large conurbations and distance from wetlands accounted for 18%, compared with 14% for the other factors regarding the study environment. However, the use of these results must take into account the existing inhabited areas for a good site selection. These outputs provide guidance for decision-makers in choosing suitable sites for green spaces and integrating them into sustainable development.