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The Statewide Waste and Environmental Education (SWEEP) Foundation hosted the 3rd edition of the Lagos Waste Forum on June 30, 2022 in the University of Lagos in partnership with Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) and Coca-Cola Nigeria with the aim of capitalising on opportunities in the public and private waste management industries while also catalysing collective solutions to the country’s waste management problems
The Lagos Waste Forum, a High-Level Citizens Waste Reduction Forum, was launched in 2020 as a flagship programme of the Statewide Waste and Environmental Education (SWEEP) Foundation.
The Director of the Lagos State University’s Centre for Environmental Studies and Sustainable Development (CESSED), Professor Kafeelah Yusuf, who represented the Vice Chancellor of Lagos State University, Prof. Ibiyemi Ibilola Olatunji-Bello, expressed her concerns about the country’s waste management. “Our nation, like many other developing nations around the world, faces difficulties and inadequacies in waste management and control, which are particularly acute in Lagos State,” she said.
Waste management efforts to maintain a clean and healthy environment have not produced the desired outcomes. Flooding and epidemics are caused by solid waste being dumped in various places. Therefore, it is more crucial than ever to ensure solid waste recycling.
“The government launched the Clean Lagos Initiative a few years ago, which resulted in the overhaul of the state’s solid waste management system by building new landfills, transfer loading stations, and material recovery facilities throughout the state,” she continued. We must be able to challenge the people and communities who produce the majority of the waste to exercise greater responsibility in the disposal of their waste while also exploring funding strategies to address the issues. We must be aware that we are all the recipients of personal deviations and that waste generated must be disposed of through the proper waste management channels. I also suggest that we follow the lead of nations that have embraced the recycling approach to waste management.
The forum, themed “Financing for a Sustainable Recyclable Waste Management,” facilitated discussions about financing for waste management entrepreneurs. The President, Lagos Waste Forum, Ambassador Phillips Obuesi, in his welcome address described the forum as a dedicated platform harnessing opportunities in public and private waste management to drive sustainable mega-city and urban circular economy. According to Amb. Obuesi Phillips, the forum is presented as an international conference, awards and exhibition of contemporary waste management solutions. He invited the audience to seize the opportunity of the forum to glean opportunities for participating in the waste and recycling sector.
