The Pan African Vision for the Environment (PAVE), has organised a two-day capacity building workshop which was designed specifically for waste pickers in Lagos state.
The workshop was described as a key activity of the Zero Waste Ambassadors Project and Capacity Building for Actors in the Waste Management Sector in Lagos state, which forms an integral part of the Multi-solving Action to Methane Reduction in Nigeria (MAMRN) Project.
President of PAVE, Mr. Anthony Akpan, opined that the workshop seeks to raise awareness and build the capacity of waste pickers to better understand organic waste and how it can be transformed into valuable resources such as compost and bio-inputs.
He said: “By improving organic waste management, participants are empowered to take concrete actions that support climate change mitigation, enhance their income opportunities, and promote a cleaner and healthier Lagos.”
The Project Facilitator, Aghaji Ujunwa Victoria, in her presentation, outlined how best to waste manage which encompass a range for handling unwanted materials, prioritising prevention, minimisation, reuse, recycling, and disposal.
In her presentation titled “Training for Waste-Pickers on Organic Waste Management to Reduce Methane Emission”, the facilitator identified waste sorting, waste selection and waste segregation as the best waste management techniques as, according to her, this goes a long way to reduce the environmental impact of waste, conserve resources, and recover value from discarded materials.
In his submission, Executive Director of Renevlyn Development Initiative (RDI), Philip Jakpor, advised the waste pickers to always engage in trainings and workshops in order to have a better perspective on how to do things in the sector.
Speaking on the workshop, Executive Director, Sustainable Research and Action for Environmental Development (SRADev Nigeria), Dr. Leslie Adogame, applauded PAVE for embarking on such a laudable project.
Adogame, who classified waste pickers as the most important stakeholder in the entire waste management value chain, also appealed to the government to encourage more stakeholders and investors to come into the waste management, saying: “This will go a long way in benefiting the society at large.”
President, Association of Scraps and Waste Pickers of Lagos (ASWOL), Friday Oku, highlighted the challenges faced by waste-pickers on a daily basis. He said his members are faced with health, social and financial risks.