Katima cleans up, recycles

THE joint efforts of the Katima Mulilo town council and Namibia Breweries to clean up the regional capital of the Caprivi have borne fruit.

The first truckload of glass and metal collected for recycling is on its way to South Africa. Concerned about the impact of pollution on the environment, Namibia Breweries (NBL) forged partnerships with various public- and private-sector players.This resulted in the delivery of beverage cans and bottles by the Katima Mulilo-based Ku Na Ni Musebesi Project to Cape Town for recycling.Partners are NEO Paints, NamPower, Collect-a-Can, Move-a-Mess, the Glass Recycling Company, NBL, Etosha Transport, Coimbra OK Foods, and the Katima Mulilo Town Council, all supporting the cleaning up of Katima Mulilo, which is emerging as an important tourist thoroughfare.The project was initiated in 2006 in an effort to establish a recycling venture to address some of the town’s waste management problems.Move-a-Mess trained project members in recycling, and helped to set up the operation, which entails the collection and compressing of cans and crushing glass bottles.With the cooperation of Coimbra OK Foods and Etosha Transport, these materials were loaded and are being transported from Katima Mulilo to Cape Town for recycling.Although recycling creates an opportunity for income generation for the unemployed, the distance and resultant cost would not make it a viable venture at Katima Mulilo without the support of various stakeholders.Speaking at the arrival of the first consignment of recyclables from Katima Mulilo, NBL Chairman Sven Thieme appealed to other companies and institutions to continue investing in such community-driven initiatives.”It does not only decrease littering, but also creates jobs,” he said.The first consignment of glass and cans arrived in Windhoek on Monday en route to Cape Town and the second load will follow by the end of the month.Concerned about the impact of pollution on the environment, Namibia Breweries (NBL) forged partnerships with various public- and private-sector players.This resulted in the delivery of beverage cans and bottles by the Katima Mulilo-based Ku Na Ni Musebesi Project to Cape Town for recycling.Partners are NEO Paints, NamPower, Collect-a-Can, Move-a-Mess, the Glass Recycling Company, NBL, Etosha Transport, Coimbra OK Foods, and the Katima Mulilo Town Council, all supporting the cleaning up of Katima Mulilo, which is emerging as an important tourist thoroughfare.The project was initiated in 2006 in an effort to establish a recycling venture to address some of the town’s waste management problems.Move-a-Mess trained project members in recycling, and helped to set up the operation, which entails the collection and compressing of cans and crushing glass bottles.With the cooperation of Coimbra OK Foods and Etosha Transport, these materials were loaded and are being transported from Katima Mulilo to Cape Town for recycling.Although recycling creates an opportunity for income generation for the unemployed, the distance and resultant cost would not make it a viable venture at Katima Mulilo without the support of various stakeholders.Speaking at the arrival of the first consignment of recyclables from Katima Mulilo, NBL Chairman Sven Thieme appealed to other companies and institutions to continue investing in such community-driven initiatives.”It does not only decrease littering, but also creates jobs,” he said.The first consignment of glass and cans arrived in Windhoek on Monday en route to Cape Town and the second load will follow by the end of the month.