Stakeholders advocate separation of miscreant waste pickers
Zeniat Abubakar, Abuja
Stakeholders have gathered in Abuja to address issues affecting national security as perpetuated through miscreants who pretend to be local waste pickers-in Nigeria.
They said the miscreants who parade as waste pickers are responsible for criminal activities in different parts of the country, especially in the Federal capital territory, FCT Abuja.
To address this, the Director of Pollution and Environment, Mr Usman Bokani said there was need for the Association of Waste Management and Association of Waste Pickers to have a means of identification of their members to separate them from these miscreants.
Bokani stated this at a round table meeting on improving National Security using Technology in the Informal Waste Management Sector held in Abuja, the nation’s capital.
The round table was organised by Chanja Datti, a Nongovernmental Organisation in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Environment.
He noted that the meeting would help improve on security concerns raised as a result of dishonest activities of some local waste pickers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and other parts of the country.
“The Federal Ministry of Environment recognized that the waste pickers are amongst the principal actors in waste management value chain because of the important role they play in creating value from the waste generated by others and in contributing to the reduction of carbon emissions” He explained.
He however stressed that the collaboration of the Federal Ministry of Environment and Chanja Datti to sanitise and improve on the activities of waste pickers was in line with Nigeria National Security Strategy and promote a clean, safe and healthy environment.
“Waste Pickers make significant contributions to public health, Sanitation and the environment by promoting resource circulation and reducing the amount of waste in our dumpsites. With Waste Pickers integration, the waste sector can contribute to the Country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) while mainstreaming and ensuring inclusive growth.” He added.
The Director, Abuja Environmental Protection Board, Mrs Sherifatu Lawan said that the Board will continue to collaborate to with public private partnerships, nongovernmental organization and other environmental bodies to achieve the Nigerian government Sustainable Development Goals.
“Waste pickers locally known as Boola-Boola roaming the city in search of the so-called recyclables has been banned by the Minister of FCT, Mr Muhammed Bello, they are to strictly operate at the dumpsite their activities are posing a threat to the residents and the populace at large.”She stated.
Mrs Lawan however called for the need to collaborate and work as a team to coordinate and organized waste pickers association and other relevant organizations to address the menace.
The Chief Executive Officer, Chanja Datti, Ms. Funto Borroffice, said her organisation has been working with the waste pickers association for seven years, while stressing that the meeting was to create awareness for the general public that waste pickers are not threats to the environment.
“Right now in Nigeria, 64 million tonnes of waste is generated every year that’s a lot of waste and unfortunately only 10 to 15% of it is collected in our downside and in our water ways, unfortunately Nigeria is ranked ninth in the world in terms of pollutants in our oceans. We generate over 200,000 tons of plastic annually that end up now and there’s a big conversation around what that is going to into aquatic animals. and the like. So against marine and terrestrial land also in terms of pollution of pollution, especially around plastics, we generate.” She explained.
She said that Chanja Datti is working with sister agencies to create more value for the resources waste pickers to get access to the market.
“So one of the things that Chanja Datti and our sister agencies have done is we have a program called protect 10,000, in the FCT, and the reason why we have this protection it is because we understand that waste pickers play a vital role in solid waste management sector in harnessing resources waste that are displaced currently.” Ms. Borroffice said.
Ms. Borroffice however disagree that majority of the waste pickers are not criminals as peculated, adding that the Organisation is hoping to provide dignity of labor for the waste pickers to encourage them.
According to her, “we don’t have enough infrastructure to do collection of all the waste we want, and so a lot of waste pickers are willing to go miles that I’m sure that none of us in this room are willing to harness these resources.”
The CPS Operation Officer FCT, Police Command Mr Akinwale Akappo, said that the Nigerian Police is working to check mate the activities of criminal waste pickers in the FCT.
The program which serves as an awareness and sensitization forum is the first in a series of activities and events geared towards improving National security as it affects waste management in the country.
