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The fight against waste or waste reduction is seldom part of urban waste management public policies in the Global South. Nonetheless, per capita waste production data indicate much smaller quantities than in Northern countries, no matter the significant resources put on reduction policies. Such a situation result from the Southern urban dwellers’ practices both in terms of consumption (much lower) and waste management (based on the generalization of reuse, repair and resale). In this article, our aim is to identify within people’s lifestyles and waste management practices what explains such a sobriety. If it is obviously a sobriety conditioned by socio-economic levels, the environmental result is only more clear in terms of low waste production.