The Minister of Environment, Barr. Mohammed Abdullahi has unveiled the report on the database user guide manual (DUGM) and National Roadmap (NR) on solid waste management to be used by all stakeholders in solid waste management in the country
Abdullahi made this known in Abuja during the presentation and unveiling of the gap analysis of the waste management sector in Nigeria, database user guide manual and national roadmap on solid waste management in Nigeria,
The report was unveiled to tackle the menace of poor solid waste management in the country.
“Nigeria, with a population of about 200 million people generates about 1.5 million tonnes of plastic waste every year. [Of these], less than 10 per cent is recycled. The problem of pollution in the country is exacerbated by inadequate waste management infrastructure, poor behavioural attitude, unskilled waste collection workforce, indiscriminate dumping and burning of plastic wastes, poor awareness, inadequate funding etc.
“It is against this background that we welcome this technical assistance to support the Federal Management Framework on Solid Waste. The technical assistance is part of a series of actions being undertaken by the government to address the challenges of solid waste in the country holistically and sustainably, particularly in our quest for alternatives to drive investment in the right direction and support sustainable development objectives to which Nigeria subscribes”.
He recalled that the technical assistance project which commenced in 2020 has attained all expected deliverables, including the engagement of national and sub-national stakeholders for effective solid waste management in Nigeria. “It is, therefore, a thing of great joy to me,” he conceded, “that despite the Covid-19 pandemic, the study was successfully carried out and validated by stakeholders and it is now ready for unveiling”.
Although he confessed that there were challenges, Abdullahi revealed that the project has also delivered capacity-building workshops for state and Federal level actors on waste collection and transportation, dumpsite management, waste recycling and recovery, waste-wise cities, extended producer responsibility (EPR) etc.
