Govt, DCA join hands in community waste management...

Govt, DCA join hands in community waste management training

Zim Now Writer

Following a landmark Waste Management Symposium hosted by the Dan Church Aid in February 2022, the organisation has partnered government with in empowering urban communities with skills on waste recycling aimed at improving its management while also creating income-generating opportunities.

The symposium was attended by Government officials, local authority representatives, academics, community leaders and representatives from the private sector and the civil society.

DCA country director Mads Lindegard said in a statement that communities aware of the negative effects of waste and were now processing garbage to boost their income.

“This is about more than simply separating plastics and organic waste. It is about empowering ordinary people by creating a consciousness about the value of what otherwise quickly becomes a source of diseases and vermin,” the DCA country director said.

Lindegard said the goal of sustainable waste management was the reduction of the amount of natural resources consumed, reusing materials taken from nature and creating as little final waste as possible.

The waste management programme that is being conducted with government is improving livelihoods of urban dwellers, while restoring the dignity of marginalised urban families.

“DCA is achieving sustainable waste management by delivering ‘waste for cash’ training, establishing centres where participating community members can operate with the prerequisite protective equipment, creating a new value system with the community at the centre, revolving around recycling waste,” Lindegard said.

Sustainable action, Lindegard said, is drawn from the knowledge that solutions to challenges communities face are within reach.

“Zimbabweans have always taken pride in their living spaces, and we are hopeful that the value of recycling will complement government efforts to restore cleanliness and pride in urban communities,” said Lindegard.

Working with local partners, DCA receives funding support from the Danish International Development Agency, and the UN World Food Programme.

In recent years heaps of uncollected domestic waste accumulating into stockpiles on the roadside have become common place in urban areas, creating fertile breeding grounds for pestilence in communities.

Global experts say the global waste recycling services market will have reached almost US$90 billion in value by 2028.