The United Nations has raised the alarm over Nigeria’s rising waste generation, saying a significant portion of the wastes remain uncollected and littered open space and drainages.
The UN-Habitat representative, Mercy Achieng Odhiambo stated this in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, at a one-day Waste Wise Cities Tool (WaCT) Training for Environmental Officers and relevant stakeholders in the State.
The programme themed ‘Capacity Building for Effective Municipal Solid Waste Management,’ was organised by the State Ministry of Environment in conjunction with the African Clean Cities Platform and Waste Wise Cities.
Odhiambo said the growing waste posed an existential threat to human and animal lives, adding the waste contained harmful chemicals contributing to environmental degradation.
She lamented that poor management of waste had caused an increase in flood disaster and sanitation-related diseases in the country, urging the government at all levels to ensure proper management of waste.
Odhiambo said that the training would help Environmental Officers assess waste generation, identify stakeholders in the recovery chain, and develop strategies for better waste management through data-driven decisions.
The UN Technical Support officer, Mr. Akin Tobi who emphasized the need for quality data in managing waste in Ekiti State.
He said, “We need quality data on the number of waste generated in Ado-Ekiti; the government is passionate about waste, and in collaboration with UN-Habitat, Ekiti was registered into the African Clean Cities Platform.”
“In June, Ado-Ekiti was one of the three cities in Africa to receive assistance on the clean city initiative, to train environmental officers on how to measure the waste generated in the state. “It’s a do-it-yourself program,” he said.
The Commissioner for Environment, Mrs. Tosin Aluko-Ajisafe, stated that effective waste management was crucial for the state’s environment, noting that the training was aimed at ensuring the state is habitable.
Aluko-Ajisafe restated the commitment of Governor Oyebanji-led administration to effective waste management, saying the government had placed Dino bins at strategic locations in the state capital for easy disposal and collection of waste.