The Oyo State Government in partnership with Mottainai Recycling
Limited on Wednesday, met with Traders and Artisans in the State, to
proffer collective solutions to the waste management problems in Oyo
State.
A statement by the Commissioner for
Information, Culture and Tourism, Dr. Wasiu Olatubosun in Ibadan,
indicated that the meeting was part of efforts to maintain a clean and
healthy environment in Oyo State.
Earlier in
his remark, Hon. Wasiu Olatunbosun noted that the government cannot make
the state clean alone, without involving all the Stakeholders. He
therefore called on them to support the Oyo State government in its
quest to make the State cleaner.
Also speaking
at the event, the Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources,
Mr. Abiodun Oni, urged traders and artisans to embrace the new waste
management of zero waste, zero budget initiative.
He
said the Governor Seyi Makinde-led administration is harnessing
opportunities in public and private waste management to drive
sustainable city and urban circular economy.
The
Commissioner further said that the present administration means to make
life bearable for residents of the state with the involvement of a
consultant (Mottainai Recycling Limited) and make Oyo State clean and
habitable with individual’s input.
“We have
had this challenge of cleaning the city. We just thought that as we
continue the process of keeping the city clean, we should engage the
stakeholders as well”, Oni said.
“This is a new
initiative that we introduced: a zero budget initiative. The people
should expect a clean environment, while we also target a waste to
wealth initiative”, he added.
He said the
Government is strategising, such that the Traders will pay a little
token to get their wastes cleared, therefore he urged them to cooperate
with the consultant, in ensuring a healthy and clean environment.
He
said the State government launched the Initiative, which resulted in
the overhaul of the state’s solid waste management system.
“We
must be able to challenge the people and communities who produce the
majority of the waste to exercise greater responsibility in the disposal
of their waste, while also exploring funding strategies to address the
issues”, he said.
He said “we must be aware
that we are all the recipients of personal deviations and that waste
generated must be disposed of through the proper waste management
channels”.
Speaking also, the Managing
Director, Mottainai Recycling. Mr. Ade Adewuyi said the new initiative
allows residents of the State to pay little or nothing for waste
management.
He said his firm is set to sort and buy wastes from waste creators and generators in the State.
Flooding
and epidemics are caused by solid waste being dumped in various
places. Therefore, it is more crucial than ever to ensure solid waste
recycling.
Speaking, on behalf of Association
of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON), the Executive Chairman, Lagelu
Local Government, Hon. Kazeem Gbadamosi commended the initiative, adding
that the Consultant needs to work with Local Governments in the State.
He
opined that waste management in the state ought to be a collective
responsibility of all, urging residents to cooperate with the new
consultant.
In her words, a Market leader,
Chief Mrs. Labake Lawal enjoined the State Government to consider the
reintroduction of the weekly and monthly environmental sanitation.
She
equally expressed her concerns about the State’s waste management
problems, adding that the Market leadership is ready to work with the
State Government and the new consultant.
“Our
State, like many other developing nations around the world, faces
difficulties and inadequacies in waste management, which are
particularly acute in Oyo State,” she said.
E-signed:Hon. Wasiu Olatubosun, Ph.D.,Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism,Oyo State.