Busia Waste to Energy-Eco-briquette Production Enterprise

Mobilises households to sort waste and transport it to collection centres for recycling into Eco-Briquettes.
e_sponsors
2013 SEED Africa Award; European Union
Sector
Waste Management
e_city
Busia
e_country
Uganda

The enterprise operates five demonstration sites in Busia, providing training on technical aspects of waste management, recycling and the legal framework. It mobilises households to sort waste and transport it to collection centres for recycling into Eco-Briquettes. The enterprise promotes the sustainable use of natural resources for income generation, helping alleviate poverty. Women are actively involved in the operations, processing waste into briquettes. Through training, they are enabled to work at different stages of Eco-Briquette production.

Eco-Inclusive Impacts
The enterprise promotes the sustainable use of natural resources for income generation, helping alleviate poverty.
  • Improving the livelihoods of poor people by offering them jobs in recycling enterprises.
  • Contributing to community empowerment by educating in climate change adaptation practices.
  • Promoting gender equality by engaging women in recycling waste and selling briquettes.
  • Reducing pressure on forests and land degradation as significant quantities of waste are kept out of landfills.
  • Preventing groundwater pollution while improving the management of solid waste.
  • Promoting waste management and raising environmental awareness among community members.
  • Turning environmental hazards into sustainable business opportunities.
  • Decreasing household spending on energy, as Eco-Briquettes are cheaper and readily available.
  • Reducing the costs of managing the waste dump site run by the local government authority in Busia through recycling.

Partners

Busia Waste to Energy-Eco-briquette Production Enterprise seeks to provide alternatives to charcoal and firewood by collecting waste for the production of eco-briquettes. The enterprise, run by women, also trains local communities in technical aspects of solid waste management and sensitizes them to the importance of forest protection. 

United Nations Development Programme provided financial support in the initial stages of the enterprise through the Nile Transboundary Environmental Action Project (NTEAP).

The Youth Environment Service receives funds from Austrian Development Cooperation to improve the coordination and management of waste-management activities.

Women Village Environment Club – Western Division participates in activities that benefit women and young people, mobilising them to collaborate with the enterprise.