One woman’s mission to eliminate plastic while finding value in waste

Amie is one of hundreds of waste collectors who have benefited from WasteAid’s programmes. She tells a familiar story of working hard every day collecting plastic waste from the beach and river in her fishing village, a short drive from Gambia’s capital city, Banjul.

Before becoming part of a WasteAid collective, Amie, who cares for her family of 15 children, struggled to make ends meet. She also worried about the health risks of burning and dumping plastic near the village’s waterways.

Now, through her work with WasteAid, Amie not only earns enough money to care for her family but she’s also making a difference in her community as part of a co-operative of waste collectors and inspiring people to responsibly dispose of their waste. 

Standing by of neatly sorted plastic she explains how she and members of her WasteAid Collectors Group collect, sort, and sell plastic to be recycled and reused. Each transaction is proudly recorded in her treasurer’s book. 

As a graduate of WasteAid’s ‘Wastepreneur’ training programme the waste collectors’ cooperative that Aimee is part of gained the know-how, insights, and investment they needed to increase their income from waste. They were able to buy community bins and weighing scales that have helped her and her fellow collectors to transform their futures. 

With your support we can empower more communities to transform their futures. Find out more here. Support Us – WasteAid