informal waste workers

Countries in Asia have begun mandating that companies must pay for managing the waste they produce through implementing  Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)  laws. In 2022, Vietnam – which ranks fourth globally in volume of plastic waste – became the first Southeast Asian nation to adopt EPR rules under a revised Environmental Protection Law. However, it remains unclear what the role of the informal waste sector will be under the new EPR laws.

The MRF is run by Chintan Environmental Research and Action Group which pioneered the Safai Sena (organised army of waste pickers) concept in the national capital and the 360-degree model for waste management. The MRF has been made possible by the Anandana Coca-Cola India Foundation, which is seeing this as its first pilot project for bringing informal workers into the formal workforce. The land for the project has been given by the New Delhi Municipal Corporation.

Informal waste workers, often women, children, elderly, and disabled, work under hazardous conditions, earning up to 20 million dollars annually. They face economic hardship, discrimination, violence, and sexual harassment. In 2016, they collected 27 million tonnes of plastic waste, collecting 59% of global recycling. Despite their contributions, their services are often overlooked and undervalued.

UNDP, through NPAP, in collaboration with IUCN and PRO Vietnam, organized a consultation workshop in Hoi An on March 8 to seek mechanisms and solutions for the informal sector to carry out collection activities for licensed recycling companies under EPR regulations.

A new scrap collection club has officially launched in Quy Nhon city, bringing together around 200 informal waste buyers and pickers from 10 districts with a primary goal of enhancing the livelihoods of these workers.

The event will feature a book launch ceremony followed by an engaging discussion on the crucial topic of sustainable waste management.

Representatives from MONRE and other government ministries, and members of NPAP discussed practical solutions and possible inputs to Viet Nam’s written submission on the draft treaty prior to INC-3.