Developing countries face significant social and environmental challenges at a crucial point in our climate change crisis. This escalates the need for viable environmentally friendly waste, recycling and circular economy solutions that benefit societies and promote environmental best practice. Waste collected, separated and re-used as a resource, can encourage developing countries to setup closed loop solutions to achieve measurable positive social, economic and environmental improvement. The growing waste open dumps in developing countries play a major role in climate change. Waste recycling solutions will reduce this while securing cleaner, healthier and economically active environments for the future.
As both the population and average temperatures increase the need for positive change is pressing. UNESCO has calculated that Malawi has a total of 4.5m pupils enrolled in primary and secondary education. Of these pupils, approximately 3.7m (83%) are enrolled in primary education. 11% of children of official primary school ages are out of school, with poorer children most likely to fall into this category. Based on educational attainment of 15 – 24-year olds in 2010:
- 5% received no education.
- 57% failed to complete primary school
- 11% studied until the end of primary school.
- 19% attended secondary school but failed to complete their secondary education.
- 7% completed secondary education and 1% studied beyond secondary level.
Malawi is a developing country with low education levels. This means that the need to support and encourage entrepreneurs, craftsman and the community to understand the commercial opportunities to be had from recycling/environmental best practice.
ICCM have seen the creativity and entrepreneurial skills of Malawians. Supporting this we want to create a space and open opportunities for communities to work with waste, seeing it as a resource. We will offer the public innovative spaces and tools to make eco waste items. We will heavily promote and support environmental waste solutions i.e. biochar or biogas that is a substitute to charcoal or electricity. This will prevent deforestation in Malawi and can be an affordable alternative product to charcoal for the 3.2 million people that live without power and are reliant on an energy source.
Our focus is to share knowledge, environmental education and climate change awareness whilst encouraging associated commercial opportunity. Our commercial business activities help financially support our dedicated small core team, but in the longer term we plan to scale up our organisation to positively impact on Malawi and other low education/developing countries.
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