Abuja: The Federal Government is collaborating with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) to promote environmentally sound and safe waste management frameworks in Africa. The Minister of Environment, Malam Balarabe Lawal, stated this at the closing workshop of the ‘Environmentally Sound and Safe Waste Management Frameworks in Africa’ project on Tuesday in Abuja.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, the project, being implemented in Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria, aims to promote better inclusion of informal structures and workers while ensuring the protection of the health and rights of informal waste pickers. Lawal, who was represented by Mrs. Adeola Omotunde, Director of Pollution Control and Environmental Health at the Ministry of Environment, said the project marked an important milestone in collective efforts to address challenges in waste management. The minister expressed optimism that waste pickers would be integrated into the waste management value chain to strengthen them and protect their interests.
In a goodwill message, Sierra Leone’s Deputy Minister of Environment, Mima Sobba-Stephens, highlighted that the project had been timely for the country. She emphasized that waste management remained a serious environmental, public health, and development challenge. Sobba-Stephens explained that rapid urbanization, population growth, changing consumption patterns, and inadequate infrastructure continued to place pressure on waste services in Freetown and other growing municipalities. She noted that emerging and hazardous waste streams require clearer rules, stronger technical capacity, and more effective oversight.
Earlier, the Director-General of the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), Prof. Innocent Barikor, remarked that the project would necessitate legislative and institutional reforms in the waste management sector in Africa and globally. He pointed out that the waste management sector plays a crucial role in safeguarding public health, ensuring environmental sustainability, and enhancing the quality of life in communities. Despite efforts to develop policies, Nigeria and other African countries continue to face significant challenges in managing waste.
In a presentation, Valentina Ricca, a UNEP representative, stated that the project, which began in 2023, aimed to strengthen waste management in Africa. She mentioned that effective waste management required strong governance and collaboration among stakeholders.