By Jason Woodroofe

In my personal life, I often find it’s very easy to take waste management for granted. In places with limited infrastructure and funds, delivering waste management services comes with an added layer of complexity, to say the least. I was fortunate enough to spend some time in Banjul, The Gambia last week seeing this dilemma in action.

Last week, from the 9-13th of June, WasteAid tapped into the expertise of the Chartered Institute of Wastes Management (CIWM) to facilitate a technical visit in support of Kanifing Municipal Council’s (KMC) waste management and behaviour change campaign Operation Sanity in Banjul. 

I travelled out to Banjul with Bonni Jee, Sarah Burns, Neil Thompson and John Patterson – four members of CIWM who are incredibly passionate about sharing their knowledge and experience to create a world without waste. In a jam-packed week of site visits, presentations, workshops and networking events, it was inspiring to see the passion that these four delegates showed, and the willingness to “roll up their sleeves” and get the work done. 

The week started with a site visit to Bakoteh dumpsite, the largest dumpsite in the greater Banjul area. The team from KMC took us for a walking tour of the site, explaining the system(s) in use at the site and some of the challenges they face. To say this visit was humbling would be an understatement. This site receives an estimated 500 tonnes of solid waste per day, brought to the facility by 40 trucks and approximately 400 donkey pulled carts. This is then sorted by several hundred informal waste collectors, often working in very hot, difficult and dangerous conditions.

Seeing the challenge(s) in managing this site was humbling for us all, but also a testament to the resilience and determination of Kanifing Municipal Council and the people of Banjul.  

On Tuesday and Wednesday the delegation was hosted by Kanifing Municipal Council for a series of discussions and workshops. The Mayor of Kanifing Municipal Council – Talib Ahmed Bensouda, kindly welcomed the delegation and spoke passionately about the partnership between WasteAid and KMC, as well as expressing his thanks to the members of CIWM for their time. 

During these workshops, the team from CIWM presented on behavior change campaigns, standard operating procedures, community engagement, stakeholder mapping and much, much more. It was an exciting two-way exchange of knowledge that both sides gained a lot from. We ran exercises on engaging with communities, mapping out stakeholders and community influencers and using creative communications campaigns to get people thinking, all of which closely related to KMC’s operation sanity.

We also reviewed the operating procedures of KMC’s Environment and Sanitation Unit, suggesting areas for improvement or deeper discussion. We loved bringing together parts of local government that perhaps didn’t get to come together to brainstorm like this very often, and the discussion reflected the desire to collaborate more.

For me, a key takeaway from these sessions was that waste management challenges truly are global challenges, and that we are all on the same journey. Granted some countries may be further along this journey than others, but that’s exactly why creating space for these conversations to take place is so crucial.  

On Thursday, we brought together members of the Dennakuwo Circular Economy Network, Kanifing Municipal Council and the CIWM delegates. This event showcased the work of the network, which is supported by funding from CIWM. The energy in the room was electric, and members of the network spoke with passion about their work and the opportunities for collaboration that the network had provided to them. One quote stands out to me in particular – “Your network is your net worth” and I couldn’t agree more. The strong people-to-people connections that we facilitated during this visit helped create the space for some amazing conversations on waste management, innovation, and the sharing of best practice.   

On the last day of the week, we came back together with the team from KMC to review parts of their Zero-Waste Strategy, breaking it down into timelines and actions and fostering discussions on these. This session stuck with me as it highlighted the vision that KMC has for their future – a future where waste is a resource, not a burden. This is what we as WasteAid are passionately trying to do as we support some of the world’s most vulnerable communities to turn waste into an economic ladder out of poverty.

As the week drew to a close, both the visiting delegation and KMC’s staff were left with a lot to think about and a burning desire to do even more. This week wouldn’t have been possible without the support of CIWM, KMC and the amazing individuals involved – so thank you all, and I’m looking forward to seeing the collaboration that’s still to come. To me, this is the start of a journey, not the end.  

Watch – updates from The Gambia:

Our BBC Radio 4 Appeal is now live!

We’re thrilled to feature on BBC Radio 4 this week where our fundraising appeal is being broadcast to the nation!

Renowned chef, vocal environmentalist, and journalist Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall is championing our appeal and we couldn’t ask for a better advocate. He shared our appeal on Radio 4 on Sunday, and it will be broadcast again this Thursday. You can also listen to it on BBC Sounds.

Being part of the BBC Radio 4 appeal is a huge step forward in our campaign to raise £1 million in time for our 10^th anniversary next year. Every donation made to the Radio 4 appeal is being matched by a generous donor up to a total of £15k so every pound donated is effectively doubled!

We’re hugely grateful for donations of any size – they all add up to allow us to support even more communities to find value in waste while addressing the health, environmental, and economic consequences of the global waste crisis. £30 provides collectors with protective clothing and safety equipment while £50 allows a waste-picker to attend a training day – improving their knowledge and skills.

To support the appeal, donations can be made via this link from Sunday 28th April: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001yqhr

Why Hugh has chosen to support WasteAid

Hugh has been vocal throughout his career about his conservation and environmental passions. He has seen the devastating impact of the waste crisis first-hand while filming his documentary series War on Plastics and Hugh’s War on Waste.

On the global waste crisis, Hugh said: “The true scale of the global waste crisis was brought home to me while filming in Malaysia a few years ago. We came across a mountain of dumped plastic containers, bottles, bags – all sorts and all shipped in from around the world.”

He added: “The thing I really like about WasteAid’s work is it isn’t just about cleaning up the planet, it’s about working with local communities and empowering them too.”

WasteAid works hard to support the people most impacted by the daily consequences of the global waste crisis. The communities we operate in don’t have the infrastructure in place to cope with the amount of waste produced, leading it to be dumped or burned which causes more CO2 to be released into the atmosphere than the global aviation industry. Through mentoring and coaching programmes, access to investments and technical knowledge sharing we work with communities to find lasting solutions to their waste challenges while also helping them to improve their economic outlook.

Our CEO, Ceris Turner-Bailes, said: “We are so grateful to Hugh for shining a light on the work WasteAid is doing to empower communities that are the worst affected by the global waste crisis and helping them to implement lasting and sustainable solutions that both improve their futures and the environment.

“With his support, we’re hopeful our BBC Radio 4 appeal will be a significant step forward in our  £1 million fundraising campaign.”

You can listen again to WasteAid’s BBC Radio 4 Appeal on Thursday 2nd May at 3:27 pm.

Donations can be made here https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001yqhr

Please note that donations can be made to this page until 11.59 pm on Saturday 4 May. Any donations made after this time may go to a different charity.

As part of the countdown to our 10-year anniversary in 2025, we’ve committed to raising £1 million. We’re on a mission to help people and the planet thrive.

Our fundraising campaign will allow us to support even more people impacted by the daily consequences of the global waste crisis. We need to expand our reach and build our programmes further across plastic, organic, electronic, and textile waste.

WasteAid’s approach is anchored by inclusive circular economy principles. We bring together people at every stage of the waste management chain from waste collectors and village leaders to policy makers and major business leaders. Through mentoring and coaching programmes, access to investments and technical knowledge sharing we work with communities to find lasting solutions to their waste challenge.

Across the globe, one in three people has no waste management service which leads to high levels of pollution, health challenges, and contributes significantly to global warming. Burned and dumped waste releases more CO2 than the aviation industry, while children in communities suffering the worst effects of waste are eight times more likely to suffer health complications.

Our vision is to create a world in which waste causes no harm, and where people in communities impacted by poor waste management are empowered to recover value from dumped materials.

Positively impacting one million people

More than a million people were positively impacted by our projects in Cameroon, Egypt, The Gambia and South Africa between 2022 and 2023. With your support, we want to benefit a million more.

What’s more, our programmes successfully saved 244.20 kilotons of C02 emissions through waste being reused or recycled. Shockingly, this is the equivalent of travelling around the earth’s equator by car 37 times!

Our programmes include plastic recycling schemes, supporting entrepreneurs and green businesses, e-waste and textile upcycling, food waste reuse and developing circular economy networks.

How will we use £1 million to transform lives?

Empowering women and youth waste collectors: Our ‘wastepreneur’ programmes provide waste collectors and green micro-business owners with the skills, knowledge, and investment they need to improve their earning potential from waste.

Mentoring and knowledge sharing: WasteAid brings together people at every stage of the waste value chain from policymakers to waste collectors. Our innovative partnerships share best practice insights, mentoring, and training between our partners in the UK and countries where we’re active.

Circular Economy Network: Inclusive circular economy principles are at the heart of our approach. We’ve seen the transformational power of our circular economy network in The Gambia, Vietnam, South Africa and India and plan to evolve and develop this approach further.

Innovative, lasting solutions: Ultimately, WasteAid works with community leaders, business owners, academics, politicians, and environmentalists to develop tailored solutions that will deliver lasting economic, environmental, and health benefits.

How you can help?

Donations of all sizes will help us achieve our fundraising target.

For businesses, partnering with WasteAid is a great way to support your ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) goals while bringing teams together to support an important environmental cause. Whether a one-off donation or longer strategic support, we will work with you to create a customised support package that meets your internal and external objectives.

Or why not challenge yourself to a fundraising activity? Bake sales, charity runs or raffles are all fun and effective ways of raising money for a charitable cause that’s close to your heart. If you’re lacking inspiration about how you can support us, we can provide you with a fundraising pack that is full of ideas.

You can donate to our 10^th anniversary campaign here.

by Angela Ludek, WasteAid’s Project Officer – Informal Sector Engagement, South Africa

About 360,000 tonnes of e-waste is generated each year across South Africa, with the province of Gauteng responsible for approximately 55% of this total. Globally e-waste is growing at a rapid rate with a lot of e-waste shipped to Africa and Asia for recycling. Around 50 million tons is generated annually. This is equivalent to throwing out 432 laptops every minute.

According to the EPR Waste Association of South Africa (eWASA), South Africans produce about 6.2kg of electronic waste per person per year. Around 12% of this is formally recycled and the majority of the remainder makes its way straight to landfill, where it dissolves gradually into the gross sludge that permeates at the landfill, known as leaching. This is hazardous to both human and environmental health as e-waste contains extremely toxic chemicals such as lead, arsenic, and mercury, flame retardants and certain phthalates. With the reality of strained structural resources in South Africa, a lot of e-waste is simply burned in communities, which means that people living there, including children, have high exposure to the toxicity released.

In between there is a missing middle: the informal repairers who are an important part of South Africa’s reuse, repair and recycling economy. They work in the heart of communities as they interface with the informal waste pickers who recover valuable resources and divert these resources from landfill towards reuse and recycling. Repairers trade with waste collectors for e-waste components to repair electrical and electronic equipment for a growing customer base of those living in townships who find it cheaper to repair than buy new appliances, for example. By investing in the community repair and reuse ecosystem, the potential of scaling up the recovery of e-waste is amplified and the livelihood opportunities of repairers within the informal economy is increased.

Building on WasteAid’s experience of delivering professional training and investing seed funding in ‘wastepreneurs’ in South Africa to scale up waste recovery into the materials value chain, WasteAid has extended its programme to e-waste.

Supported by the Dixon Foundation, a UK charity that nurtures positive change for the planet’s future, WasteAid has developed a programme that facilitates and supports e-waste repair and reuse models, by investing in repair micro-businesses within Diepsloot, a densely populated township in Gauteng. This interception of e-waste into appliance repair models keeps products and materials in use, and is part of a circular approach that is paving the way for a more sustainable future.

The E-Waste Repair and Reuse Programme transferred knowledge on repairing electrical appliances through the business incubation training, with a practical application on electrical circuitry and appliance repair during the programme.

The e-waste training programme curriculum has been designed to include an inclusive overview of the business of e-waste repair with an extensive overview of circular economy principles, as well as the global and local implications of e-waste.

Ten active repairers took part in and completed the programme. Training took place at the Wot-If? Trust e-Hub in Diepsloot township in Johannesburg, South Africa, which was central for all participating repairers to access. It was delivered by four specialised local trainers.

The training programme primarily focused on electrical repair related to small domestic appliances which included larger white goods.

During the practical sessions, a range of domestic appliances were donated for fixing from WasteAid’s network of waste and environmental practitioners. All of which were all fixed during class and included: kettles, urns, slow-cooker, irons, microwaves, fans, monitors, a washing machine and a deep freezer.

Some fixed items were donated back to the community organisations they came from, and some network members who contributed equipment for fixing, donated an amount of money to the repairers to share.

All participants had indicated at the start of the project that they lacked access to specialised tools as they were costly to invest in. To entrench business growth by building capacity, each participating repairer received capital investment in the form of tools needed to ensure the effective turnaround time of repairing items.

The needs analysis at the start of the programme indicated challenges they each face in building trusted relationships with their customers that will lead to an increase in returning customers, and in turn an increase in income.

After the programme, the upskilled repairers said that as micro-businesses they now feel that they will build stronger trusted relationships with their customers as they have solid knowledge of the proper repair standards and safety surrounding the repair of electrical appliances and circuitry.

All ten participating repairers concluded that the training was very useful to them and they were proud to showcase their certification of the programme to their customers and community. They all indicated that the business and financial knowledge and digital marketing aspects added huge value to the running of their businesses.

Through this programme, it became clear to participants that there is further value for business growth in repair by amplifying the inclusion of components from e-waste generated in the community into their repair models.

This has resulted in the repairers engaging with community members, especially the wastepreneurs (reclaimers that went through WasteAid’s Wastepreneur Challenge programmes) to acquire components of electrical and electronic waste that they collect. Repairers will buy these components from them instead of new components for repair and so creating an ecosystem that allows for awareness and exchange.

 Repairer David Chiporore commented; “I used to throw away common parts, now I can use them and get money”.

The feedback indicated that the practical training of the electrical aspects increased their confidence in their skill set to repair and that they appreciated the e-waste overview and breakdown of electronic equipment to understand the value of the extracted minerals, as well as the overall perspective of utilising e-waste components for repair.

The E-Waste Repair and Reuse Programme demonstrated that this approach is scalable, and WasteAid is exploring how to replicate this programme in the province and elsewhere in South Africa.

These programmes focused on e-waste recovery will amplify the usage of discarded e-waste components in communities to accelerate keeping e-waste in the local ecosystem through repair and reuse models.

As this year draws to a close, I am delighted to reflect on what has been a very successful year for WasteAid, delivering our vision of a world without waste where people in need are empowered to recover its value.  Whilst the year has not been without its challenges, I am hugely proud of all that we have delivered.  This has been our biggest year so far for our young and dynamic organisation and we positively impacted the lives of 1,264,730 people in Cameroon, Egypt, Gambia and South Africa.  Our programmes have succeeded in saving 244.20 kt of CO2 emissions through waste being reused or recycled within our programmes – the equivalent of travelling 37 times around the earth’s equator by car!  We have intervened to reduce and recycle plastic, organic and electronic waste.  We couldn’t do this without the support of our friends and donors, and I wish to extend our thanks to all who have been with WasteAId on this journey.

The projects that we delivered this year include the fabulous Circular Economy Network in The Gambia which was funded by the CIWM (Chartered Institute of Wastes Management).  Phase one of this project came to an end in June, but I am delighted that we continue to partner with CIWM for phase 2 which is already enjoying fantastic engagement.  This project is both unique and innovative and is professionalising waste management and supporting circular economy innovation.  In Egypt we have been tackling flexible plastic waste in the Aswan region bringing stakeholders together to create sustainable local solutions funded by Dow Packaging.  In South Africa, we were awarded funding from UKRI (UK Research & Innovation) through WRAP’s (Waste and Resources Action Plan) International Circular Plastic Flagship Projects competition. We undertook an innovative feasibility study developing a circular economy centred and stimulating end-markets locally for recyclable materials.  Early 2023 saw the launch of our partnership with the Norwegian Retailers Environment Fund (NREF) focused on the empowerment of vulnerable communities in Banjul, Gambia to reduce and recycle plastic waste through a local recycling facility.

We also continued our impactful collaboration with long-term partners Bunzl Group Plc, who supported our interventions in both Cameroon and South Africa with the informal sector engaged in waste management – elements included the construction of a plastic recycling facility in Cameroon and practical and financial support to wastepreneurs in the townships of Johannesburg.  Finally, we further developed projects to tackle organic waste in The Gambia and electronic waste in South Africa funded by Partners Group and The Dixon Foundation respectively.

Through these projects we have supported and nurtured entrepreneurs and green businesses in the waste space, as well helping communities to reduce waste pollution.  It has been a busy year, but we are still keen to do so much more, and you know what, we will be doing even more!  I am thrilled to let you know that at the same time as delivering what we have in 2023, the amazing team at WasteAid has been able to develop an innovative and expansive 2024 portfolio which includes starting work in two additional countries.  We are set to grow a phenomenal 70% and will be working with new funders and partners, do stay tuned for announcements in due course!  Without funders such as our proud partners Biffa and their committed staff, ARM, Beyondly, Compass Group, Cromwell Polythene, Helen & Michael Brown and Zumo our ability to develop such innovative and impactful responses to the waste crisis would be significantly curtailed.  Thank you again for your support it is as a direct result of this that WasteAid is set to reach even greater heights in 2024.

I would like to also thank our individual supporters, whether sharing or liking our social media or contributing to our fundraising campaigns, thank you.  Times are tough and this support is enormously appreciated.   Equally, we hugely appreciate the support from members of the Foodservice Packaging Association, attendees of the National Recycling Awards and individual members of CIWM.

I am sure you have seen that we have recently launched an ambitious fundraising campaign to help us raise £1 million by the end of 2025 which will be WasteAid’s tenth anniversary.  This is to ensure the sustainability of our vital organisation and to allow us to continue to do even more.  Any ideas or suggestions as to how you could help us achieve this target would be gratefully received.  If you would like to get involved, please get in touch.  We are already off to a great start even in just the first month and we will be sharing updates in 2024.

It now only remains for me to wish you all a very happy holiday season and to offer my very best wishes to you for 2024.

Ceris Turner-Bailes

CEO, WasteAid

This week as part of the pathway to an internationally legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, known as The Plastics Treaty, the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee will meet in Nairobi to consult on the Zero draft[1].   Given the huge challenge of developing a treaty that that will fit the context of 193 member states once ratified (by the end of 2024) it will contain both binding and voluntary approaches.

The Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty, convened by The Ellen MacArthur Foundation and WWF states that the treaty  is:

“..the single most important opportunity to accelerate progress towards a circular economy in which plastic never becomes waste or pollution, and the value of products and materials is retained in the economy”[2]

WasteAid has been reflecting on the potential impact of The Treaty in countries where we work such as The Gambia, Cameroon, and South Africa.    We agree that the Global Plastics Treaty could be a force for good in forcing countries to prioritise the issue of plastic pollution and to catalyse investment.  The Business Coalition have been pushing three core principles that they believe should be central to the Plastics Treaty:

1. Reducing the production of plastics with high leakage rates and those reliant on fossil fuels

2. keeping materials in the loop at the highest value; and

3. prevention and remediation of macro and micro-plastics leaking into the environment.

Inherent to the application of these principles is the need for a functioning waste management system.

It is estimated that 2 billion people globally do not have access to a waste collection service and as a result open dumping results in over a third of all waste disposal[3].   In a study in The Gambia, the budget allocation for waste collection was sufficient for the collection of only 10% of the waste in the country[4].  Cost recovery for waste services differs drastically across income levels. User fees range from an average of $35 per year in low-income countries to $170 per year in high-income countries, with full or nearly full cost recovery being largely limited to high-income countries[5].

We agreed with Professor David C Wilson’s latest blog released by ISWA  where he states “extending municipal solid waste collection to all and phasing out uncontrolled dumping and open burning would halve plastic leakage into the oceans and cut by more than 90% the open burning of plastic waste[6]”.  It is encouraging to see Waste Management discussed in the Plastics Treaty zero draft:

‘…a portion of the fees collected through EPR schemes to be used to improve infrastructure and improve the livelihoods and opportunities for, and develop the skills of, workers in the waste sector, including waste workers in informal and cooperative settings;’

 However, our concern is the big emphasis placed on EPR as the key source of financial investment to set up basic collection systems up and running in low-income countries.  We agree that  EPR can be a piece of the jigsaw but in countries that have no collection system in place whatsoever, the finance available will not be sufficient to create a fully functioning waste management system.  An EPR system operational in the global north helps to drive the collection of recyclables alongside a functioning waste management system.    In countries like South Africa where we have seen EPR help drive healthy rates of collection levels of PET (estimated to be around 60%) where there are markets/incentives. However, materials that have no market value no value continue to leak into the environment.

After the ratification of the Treaty in 2024 there will be a long process for countries to think through how they will develop and operationalise policies that will assure compliance to the Treaty.    In the meantime, millions of tonnes of low-value plastics and other materials will be entering the environment or will be burnt.   Let’s not let discussions around The Plastics Treaty stop us from taking simple action now to support member states to arrest the mismanagement of waste.   This could be through increasing institutional development funding (where funding on waste is less than 0.3%) or through allocating a greater share of EPR levies to municipalities (rather than going to PROs) to support the informal sector to collect all materials and not just ones where there is a market.

There is a U2 song that includes the line, “the wheels are turning but the car’s upside down”.   There is a lot of talk and activity but we need to act on these issues now if we want to move and see change.

In the meantime, be sure to visit www.wasteaid.org to find out more about our whole-systems approach to tackling the global waste crisis.

[1] ZERODRAFT.pdf (unep.org)

[2] Business coalition for a global plastics treaty (ellenmacarthurfoundation.org)

[3] Wasteland; Oliver Franklin Wallace, pg 7

[4] The state of solid waste management in the gambia by United Purpose – Issuu

[5] Trends in Solid Waste Management (worldbank.org)

[6] Guest Blog: Waste Management needs to be on the main agenda for the ‘plastics treaty’ negotiations | ISWA