In Ivory Coast, public and private sector companies have formed an association with the aim of finding a sustainable solution for plastic waste management. The network is called the Association Ivoirienne de valorisation des plastiques (AIVP).
The aim is to achieve “Zero non-recovered plastic waste in Ivory Coast by 2030”. This is the challenge set by the Ivorian Association of Plastics Recycling (AIVP). Created in October 2019, AIVP was officially launched on September 24th, 2020.
According to Thomas Caso, Managing Director of Nestlé Côte d’Ivoire and a member of this association, the network of professionals will have the mission of pooling the efforts of private and public sector players to create a coordinated system for managing plastic waste and promoting the circular economy among companies and public authorities. AIVP will also raise awareness of the populations on the best practices in terms of plastic waste management. “The problem is not plastics; the problem is the use that people make of them,” says Don Dussey, the president of AIVP.
According to the Ivorian Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, Ivory Coast produces more than 40,000 tonnes of plastic waste every year. More than 50% of this waste is evacuated directly into the streets, while less than 20% is sorted and recycled. The Ministry notes that the immediate consequence of this situation is the increased pollution of the environment, particularly water and aquatic ecosystems.
Pending the implementation of a “sustainable solution” for plastic waste management by AIVP, sanitation projects are continuing in the country. Nestlé Côte d’Ivoire, for example, aims to make 100% of its plastic packaging in greater Abidjan recyclable or reusable by 2025. To achieve this, the subsidiary of the Swiss group Nestlé, which specialises in food processing, is multiplying initiatives in this West African country. The most recent one is called “J’aime Cocody, loin de ma lagune les déchets plastiques” (I love Cocody, far from my lagoon plastic waste). The project, launched a few days ago in partnership with the municipality of Cocody, aims to reduce plastic pollution in the lagoon bays of this municipality, located in the greater Abidjan area.
Inès Magoum
