Abuja, Nigeria: The Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) has entered a strategic partnership with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), on mitigating the effects of plastic waste in Nigeria, as well as curbing it.
Mr. Oluyomi Banjo, National Coordinator, UNIDO Regional Office Hub, who stated in Abuja on Thursday, April 13, 2023, noted that plastic waste had become a serious global environmental problem.
According to him, one of the solutions being offered for the removal of plastic waste in the country is the circular economy.
“Circular economy, which is also an industrial economy, is a process where parts materials are rebound into use several times along the value chain,” he said.
Banjo outlined things to be done to achieve a circular economy including innovation, invention, creativity, digitalization stewardship, partnership, and collaborations among businesses, governments, and consumers.
“The time frame for this project is 36 months and it started in April 2022”.
“AEPB, Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWNA), and Food and Beverage Recycling Alliance (FBRA) are the implementing partners for the project in the country,” he said.
Banjo said that the UNIDO project will set up a data management system with AEPB at Jabi as the trial project in FCT, while Yaba and Lekki in Lagos would be at the metropolitan level.
He said that in Nigeria, plastics were responsible for 13 percent of the total solid waste, with the country ranking as the ninth country with coastlines causing mismanaged plastic waste.
“By 2025, Nigeria will be the biggest user of mismanaged plastic wastes in Africa.
“Mismanaged plastic emissions can be greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) which is a global problem,” he stated.
The UNIDO chief said that plastics were being released into the seas where they are not properly managed, adding that could travel thousands of miles, affecting ecosystems and the blue economy.
In his welcome address, the Permanent Secretary of, the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), Mr. Adesola Olusade, said that plastic wastes were a primary contributor to global warming.
Olusade, who was represented by the Director of Administration and Finance, Health and Human Services, FCTA, Mr. Noel Haruna, said that there was a need to stress the importance of the seminar on the sustainable plastic value chain through circular economy.
“In the FCT, plastic pollution has also become a regular occurrence in drainage channels, canals, and waterways, with ranging degrees of plastic waste.
“These littered wastes, which contribute significantly to climate change, also cause short-term erosion due to blockages of streams and waterways as well as flooding,” Olusade said.
Earlier in his remarks, the Director of AEPB, Mr. Osi Braimah, said that the programme was very important and crucial to the health of FCT residents.
Braimah, who was represented by the Director, of Environmental Conservation, AEPB, Hajiya Zainab Umar, said that the programme would tackle climate change and biodiversity pollution.
“It is really heartwarming that AEPB is leading the programme in the FCT.
Director, of Solid Waste Management, AEPB, Mr. Ben Enwerem, said that the seminar was aimed at creating awareness of the project which AEPB was doing with UNIDO.
“We engage in waste evacuation and disposal, as an organization through registered and licensed city cleaning contractors, who do these on our behalf.
“We also engage in advocacy visits to relevant and important citizens like traditional rulers and heads of agencies to assist us in reaching their wards to ensure that wastes are properly disposed of in their various areas,” he said.
The general aim of the seminar is to achieve a circular economy transition along the global value chain.
This would provide levers that could curb raw materials use, preserve biodiversity and reduce pollution, including GHG.
The seminar was also aimed at sensitizing Abuja residents on waste recycling and the introduction of waste separation at source.
