The Oti Landfill: Assessing the potential of the informal waste recycling economy

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Abstract The informal recycling sector has gained recognition in recent times as the base of the industrial value chain. The focus is achieving effective recycling with the help of the informal waste economy. In spite of the fact that operators of this informal economy are a common sight in the urban areas of in many developing countries, very little is known about them and scant attention is paid to them. The aim of the study was to investigate the activities of the informal waste recyclers on the Oti landfill and estimate the economic value of their activities. The study adopted a mixed method approach of research and descriptive survey to collect the necessary data using interviews, field guides and observations. A total of 39 waste pickers and 16 waste buyers were interviewed. One waste picker picked on average 27–45kg of recyclables a day and obtained on average 1,186USD per annum whereas one waste buyer obtained 54,300 USD per annum. These figures were based on retrieving just over 5% of the recycling materials received on the landfill which translates to about 3700 tonnes annually. The results revealed that the role of informal waste economy plays a significant role in the broader waste management system as well as the local economy and therefore requires urgent attention and appropriate policy responses from policy makers.

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