A solution urgently needed

There are about 35,000 compounds in KMC. Hence it is absurd to see hundreds of good meaning people (some of whom are unemployed) in “tesito”, cleaning their neighborhood when money for the job has already been collected by municipalities.

Dr. Malanding Jaiteh, a Gambia diaspora expert, has proffered a solution that is practical, focused and will provide jobs to hundreds of unemployed youths while keeping the garbage off our streets.

Dr Jaiteh’s solution is as follows:

Employ 1,000 youth (1 for every 35 compounds), and their job would be to work with every compound to ensure that their waste is sorted on site as follows – glass and metals, paper, plastic, and organic.

Create four holding areas, one for each of the types (of waste).

Organic goes to composting; glass and plastic, and paper and metal sorted for re-use or resale.

Funding:  D350 per compound each month and take it out of municipal rates, and sale of recycle materials.

Cost: D1, 500 x D5,000 per month = D7,500, 000.  Contract transportation of trash to sites and management overhead D5,000,000.

Benefits: create jobs for those who need it most, and it would bring back confidence in the government and educate public on waste management

Administration: The administration has to be public private partnership (PPP)

Guest editorial

“I come from a poor family, I have seen poverty. The poor need respect, and it begins with cleanliness.”

Narendra Modi