Rapid urbanization in African countries, combined with population growth and changing production patterns and consumption habits, significantly increased waste generation (expected to nearly triple by 2050). This recent trend is driving demand for more effective waste management services. In response, youth-led non-profit Green Africa Youth Organization (GAYO) has been working to establish community-led circular economy waste management, laying the foundations for a more resilient, Zero Waste Africa.
Since 2019, GAYO has been mainstreaming a practical Zero Waste strategy to help build sustainable districts, municipalities, and cities. This strategy was shaped by seven years of community work and GAYO’s participation in the Zero Waste Academy (ZWA), organized annually by GAIA Asia Pacific and Mother Earth Foundation (MEF). GAYO’s advocacy is grounded on the belief that “Zero Waste cannot be decoupled from sustainable development,” as Zero Waste is “at the center of job creation, climate action and environmental justice.”
FORGING ALLIANCES, MAXIMIZING RESOURCES
Founded in 2014 in Ghana, West Africa and composed of a small group (around 30 youth employees working with various interns and volunteers) with a large voice, GAYO is leading the conversation on environmental sustainability and climate action in Africa. The group has been active in high-profile international forums, including regular participation in the United Nations Climate Change Conference (Conference of Parties).
To foster youth engagement in climate change policy-making at the national level, GAYO partners with other organizations to establish Youth Climate Councils. So far, they have created one each in Ghana, Brazil, and Costa Rica. To raise awareness and spur action on pressing environmental issues, GAYO continues to work directly with “eco-clubs” in high school and university campuses in Africa. More recently, GAYO has been organizing informal waste workers, many of whom are female, and connecting them with other community actors to further enhance sustainable waste management practices.
The Sustainable Communities Project saw the launch of GAYO’s strategy document ‘Zero Waste Strategy: Ghana’ in October 2021. Following the pilot project in New Edubiase which commenced in 2018, GAYO replicated its Zero Waste model in four other municipalities spanning the Ashanti region and two major cities: Accra and Cape Coast.
“The common element is these municipalities are all struggling with waste management; they are all overwhelmed with too much waste, both plastics and organics. The other common problem is that they do not have enough finances to deal with waste,” said Desmond Alugnoa, Co-founder and Administrative Director of GAYO and a graduate of the 3rd ZWA that took place in Manila in 2018. “When you show them how Zero Waste can indeed help them to minimize their spending on waste [while increasing employment], then it becomes something all of them are interested in.”
ZERO WASTE ACADEMY: VALUABLE LESSONS LEARNED
Desmond’s participation in the ZWA held in Manila, Philippines in 2018 inspired GAYO’s Zero Waste movement. “We realized we did not really have much of the capacity, including even technical knowledge, about some of the things around waste…I saw [the Academy] as an opportunity to gain more knowledge and perhaps get access to more resources to improve on the education that we were doing in the communities,” said Desmond.
Knowledge-sharing with other participants from different parts of the world gave Desmond the opportunity to shape GAYO’s ideation. “We had the opportunity to listen to various presenters talk about movement-building and the work of Zero Waste,” Desmond said.
Moreover, GAIA and MEF brought the ZWA delegates to barangays, hospitals, and schools that practiced Zero Waste. This immersion helped GAYO refine their Zero Waste strategy, from segregating waste in a materials recovery facility (MRF) run by the barangay, to designing community engagement for greater inclusiveness (e.g., accredited waste collectors and haulers ply a specific route and receive a regular salary and/or an allowance from the barangay, municipality, or city).
“The government is responsible for solid waste management so I think that the idea of working with barangays helped me when I got back,” said Desmond. “Another significant step: I realized that we had to integrate the informal waste pickers, and a lot of them were women. We were already working with youth, fisher communities and coastal communities. So integrating [waste pickers] gave us a better working relationship with all three: the communities, the youth, and the women’s groups.”
IMPACT #1: LEGITIMIZATION OF WASTE WORKERS
GAYO’s first hurdle post-Academy was to legitimize the informal waste workers in Ghana. For the longest time, these waste workers had operated in hiding and under terrible conditions — sometimes getting into accidents because they did not have a safe space for sorting, or were not wearing appropriate protective gear (e.g., reflective clothing at night). They were often subjected to harassment, neglect, and given insufficient payment for their services. Social stigma still had to be overcome. Waste management companies viewed these workers as competition, district officers regarded them as nuisances, and medical personnel withheld treatment as these workers had no health insurance.
GAYO, in collaboration with the relevant municipal assemblies, worked to formalize the activities of the informal waste workers within their jurisdiction. “Reaching out to the various waste picker groups, registering them, brought them together and gave them some level of power, some level of voice,” said Desmond, adding that the painstaking process of trust-building eventually paid off. “Government started showing more interest as a partner rather than an enemy. The multinational companies realized that they can integrate some of these people into what they are doing.”
Through GAYO’s efforts, registered waste pickers soon benefited in terms of: 1. Increased revenue: working with the municipal assembly or district office gave them better bargaining power, so they could negotiate a fair rate from recyclers; 2. Improved health and safety: they now had workstations at an MRF, and had access to medical care after being registered under the national health insurance; and 3. Recognition: being organized into cooperatives and having a working relationship with the government eliminated the stigma of illegitimacy. “They are actually now in the process of forming a national alliance of waste pickers and waste collectors so wherever they are, they are able to speak for one another and stand up for one another and have one voice,” said Desmond.
IMPACT #2: INNOVATION LEADS TO GREEN JOBS
GAYO’s work on improving the waste management system also turned the MRF into an innovation hub. Waste diverted from the landfill are now resource materials that the waste pickers, unemployed youth, and women volunteers convert into marketable products. Coconut husks and sawdust are turned into charcoal briquettes which are a more sustainable alternative to conventionally produced charcoal. Plastic sachets, used water bottles, and old rubber tires are turned into raincoats, curtains, aprons, bags, and other “upcycled arts.” Biodegradable food wastes are processed into agricultural feeds or compost. “Composting is economically viable. The first site produces about 2,000 kilograms of compost every month. Farmers have given good feedback about how this compost is better [than commercialgrade fertilizer],” said Desmond. “We are trying to make sure that the government understands the employment potential of this [Zero Waste] sector,” Desmond emphasized. Their budding green industry has also sprouted a cassava farm (as cassava starch is one binding ingredient for the briquettes) and a mushroom farm independently run by waste workers who requested training from GAYO on urban gardening and mushroom farming. “Eight of them decided to set up a mushroom farm,” said Desmond, divulging that exploratory talks have been initiated by the district office for the women to produce mushroom juice for a private investor.
THE NEXT FRONTIER: A UNIFIED APPROACH TO ZERO WASTE
GAYO is confident that their Zero Waste strategy can be further developed as a waste problem solver, and made fit-for-use anywhere. As proof of concept, a municipal director who spoke at the recently concluded Conference of Parties (COP27) vouched for the cost-effectiveness of the Ghana model, noting that successful waste reduction in his municipality resulted in minimized waste transport for the contracted service provider), thus saving on hauling fees. “The target is to transform holistically many African countries, especially to their way of thinking around waste, but we are also hoping to now influence more government decisions around waste and take it from that level as well… If we are able to get the proper backing of [the] government, we would completely eliminate [much] of the waste at-source, before it’s even generated. So it gives us the opportunity to have only waste that we can properly manage,” Desmond said. GAYO is strengthening its relationship with government by taking either a supportive or an advisory role in the phasing out of problematic plastics under the Ghana National Plastic Action Partnership (NPAP) program, the implementation of a national Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme, and ongoing standards-setting that would ensure that signed global conventions and agreements are rectified and codified into national law. GAYO’s on-the-ground training on Zero Waste has also had a ripple effect, with their trainees becoming Zero Waste ambassadors who empower others in the community to practice Zero Waste. In that respect, Desmond said, the ZWA remains relevant as a teaching platform that would enable those already passionate about Zero Waste to gain the right knowledge before embarking on a campaign. “It will be better that you get the right knowledge and the right understanding before you put your resources into something that is going to change the country or the world… This is like the basic beginning for you to understand what is a solution [and] what is not, and how to go about it,” he added.
Originally published in January 2023 in Zero Waste Academy: Stories of Impact, by the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA).
Download the book and be inspired by the efforts of ZWA graduates who are bringing their communities into the zero waste movement.
