The Lagos State Government has signed three agreements with private investors to turn waste into useful products.
The Director of Public Affairs, Mr Kunle Adeshina, said this in a statement on Sunday, noting that the MoUs were to help reduce the amount of waste in the state.
He said, “The state over the weekend demonstrated its irrevocable commitment to advanced waste conversion.”
According to him, the signing took place during the 11th Lagos International Climate Change Summit.
The Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr Tokunbo Wahab, said the government wants to move from the old waste system of “pick and dump” to “conversion of waste to wealth which was more sustainable.”
He said the new MoUs would help reduce the waste that ends up at landfill sites.
“This is through a deposit refund system hinged on the Extended Producer’s Responsibility mechanism (EPRM),” he said, adding that one of the companies, HAK Waste Ltd, plans to establish a circular beverage container bottle recycling and recovery system.
“Haggai Logistics Ltd proposes to build a first-of-its-kind tyre recycling plant. This will be responsible for processing end-of-life tyres via a fully automated Waste Tyre Recycling Factory and deployment of environmentally sound recycling technologies.”
He also said, “Mondo 4 Africa, proposing to convert non-recyclable plastic waste into sustainable fuel and other valuable resources through environmentally friendly technology.”
Mr Wahab said the government would continue to educate residents to sort their waste and see it as a resource.
He said, “We are trying to make people change the culture of seeing waste as waste but waste as a resource. We are also trying to shift their mindset from the practice that has been in use for decades.”
On his part, the Managing Director of LAWMA, Mr Muyiwa Gbadegesin, said, “The state government or LAWMA alone cannot be saddled with the responsibility of managing the quantum of daily generated solid waste in the state.”
“We need the partnership of the private sector to turn waste into a resource and wealth,” he added.
The investors thanked the government for the opportunity and promised to work with the state to achieve its goals.
The event was attended by the Special Adviser on Environment, Mr Rotimi Akodu; the Permanent Secretary, Office of Environmental Services, Mr Omobolaji Gaji; and the Permanent Secretary, Office of Drainage Services, Mr Mahamood Adegbite.