The equipment, provided through the West Africa Coastal Areas (WACA) Resilience Investment Project II under the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Natural Resources, includes two tractors with trailers, one compactor truck, two trailers, two six-wheel trucks, 12 tricycles, 100 wheelbarrows and 200 120-litre trash bins.
The handover followed years of complaints from residents in 11 communities along the Kotu Stream over poor waste collection, which project officials say has contributed to indiscriminate dumping and recurring floods despite annual cleanup exercises.
Minister of Environment, Climate Change and Natural Resources Rohey John Manjang, described the equipment as a major investment in solving one of the country’s growing environmental challenges. “These items are around D30 million. This is just to tell you that waste collection and management is very expensive,” she said.
She urged both councils to use the equipment strictly for waste collection, warning that government and the WACA project would closely monitor their use. “I do not want to see these wheelbarrows mixing cement. It is for waste collection,” she said.
WACA Project Coordinator Dr. Muhammed Lamin Sanyang said the equipment responds directly to concerns repeatedly raised by communities living along the Kotu Stream. He explained that although the project has spent the past three years carrying out awareness campaigns, training and periodic cleanups, the absence of proper waste collection equipment meant rubbish quickly returned to the stream. “We are responding to the cry of the communities we are serving,” he said, adding that the project aims to establish a sustainable waste management system to keep the Kotu Stream clean and strengthen resilience against flooding.
Brikama Area Council Chairperson Yankuba Darboe, welcomed the support, describing the handover as “a tangible demonstration of partnership and shared responsibility.” He assured WACA that the council would use the equipment effectively and maintain transparency and accountability in managing the assets waste management is not just about sanitation. It is about public health, dignity and sustainable development,” he said.
Speaking on behalf of the Lord Mayor of KMC, Chief Executive Officer Pa Sait Ceesay thanked the WACA project and described the initiative as proof that no institution can address environmental challenges alone. “There must be partnership, and definitely this is a very good partnership,” he said.
The ceremony concluded with the official presentation of the equipment to both councils, with project officials expressing hope that the new fleet will improve waste collection services in communities along the Kotu Stream and help protect the area from the impact of indiscriminate dumping and flooding.
