With generous support from The Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), Tearfund is implementing an exciting plastic recycling project ‘From Trash to Cash: Turning plastic pollution into economic opportunity’. The long-term objective of the project is to eliminate plastic waste dumped into rivers and watercourses, thus breaking the cycle of the negative impact of plastics on marine and human health and to turn it into economic benefits for people living in poverty.
Working with local partner, Yola Renewal Foundation, the project is setting up a social enterprise in Yola, northern Nigeria, to gather plastic waste and recycle it into saleable products, providing income and employment opportunities for local youths from marginalised communities. The project is also engaging with local government and state institutions to advocate for more effective policies that reduce marine litter and create green and fair jobs.
In addition, the project is working at a global level, engaging with waste picker representatives and fast moving consumer goods companies to deepen the evidence base around good practice in private sector partnerships with the informal waste sector. The aim is to strengthen collaboration between stakeholders, and develop and pilot the implementation of a set of principles that will guide partnerships between the private sector and informal waste sector to improve livelihoods, respect human rights and increase plastic recovery rates in recycled plastic supply chains and voluntary extended producer responsibility (VEPR) schemes.
The project began in 2021 and will continue for 3 years.
