Experts advocate robust regulations to improve waste disposal

The President of the Association of Waste Managers of Nigeria, Dr Olugbenga Adebola, has called for the government to establish a strong policy to guarantee investment in the waste disposal sector.

Adebola noted this during a recent event in Lagos hosted by the Property and Environment Writers Association of Nigeria.

He said, “It is not just about money, because there is a lot of policy inconsistency; that is where we are. We are where we are. So, everything should be good, and it should be used by the private sector. The government has no business being in business. The government in Nigeria, in Africa, not Nigeria alone, cannot manage business. They are not used to doing business. But they are built and trained to be good regulators, to provide good policy together with the private sector, and then to implement it.

“Then the private sector brings the funding. But how can the private sector bring the funding and the expertise? The government must be able to provide that enabling environment. Nobody wants to take their hard-earned money into a bottomless pit. It is like you are throwing your money away, and you are not sure whether you are going to recover what you are investing. All over the world, there must be what I call a “guarantee”.’

Adebola also stressed the need for effective waste collection from the top step of the waste generator, adding that this is what the Private Sector Participant programme represents.

He noted that the PSP programme was instituted to ensure that waste is collected from the top step of the waste generators, adding that once the waste is collected from the top step of the waste generators, “the waste will not find itself on the highway, thereby causing something illegal”.

“That waste will not find itself in the drainage systems; it will not find itself anywhere it is not supposed to be, because it will have been tackled from the top step of the waste generator and transported. Ordinarily, we should have material recovery facilities because managing waste in a megacity like Lagos that does not have that land requires an effective and functional material recovery facility. Even if the waste is conventional, let us assume it is not even sorted at the top step of the waste generators; it should be taken to a facility where the waste can be sorted out,” Adebola said.

He advised the government to formalise the informal sector in waste disposal: “I do not advocate the banning of the informal sector; we must formalise it and get them to work.’

He emphasised that the PSP participants have committed to investing in the sector, stressing that there must be a guarantee of return on investment.

Earlier, the Chairperson of PEWAN, Mrs Okwy Iroegbu-Chikezie, highlighted that the group has always advocated for increased investment in waste infrastructure by developing modern waste treatment facilities and expanding collection services, implementing effective waste segregation and awareness campaigns, deploying smart bins for efficient waste management, and increasing partnerships with the private sector and communities.

“As a group within the built environment, PEWAN sees the need for authorities to deepen policy enforcement and monitoring, improve budget allocation for waste management, and involve local communities in waste reduction efforts,” she said.