September 16, 2020

End pollution in Kenya and beyond

topic:	Pollution
tags:	#pollution, #plastic pollution, #oil companies, #Kenya, #NGO, #donation, #social media
located:	Kenya
by:	Yair Oded

Although Kenya has been a harbinger of sustainability in Africa, instituting a monumental ban on plastic bags in 2017 and passing several other restrictions on usage and dumping of plastic products, the East African nation continues to struggle with rising volumes of pollution.

Pivoting away from fossil fuel burning, oil and gas companies are expanding their production of plastic and have set their sights on Kenya as the ultimate destination for their waste. These companies have successfully lobbied the U.S. government to condition the renewal of a lucrative trade agreement between the U.S. and Kenya on the latter’s consent to accept American-produced plastic waste. 

All the while, the COVID-19 pandemic has introduced yet another environmental challenge, with widespread usage of Personal Protection Equipment constituting a significant source of plastic pollution. 

Clean Up Kenya is a non-governmental organisation advocating and promoting public sanitation in Kenya.

The organisation was founded in July 2015 with the primary aim of mitigating solid-waste pollution in Kenya by tackling waste management and behavioral interventions such as littering and dumping. 

Over the past several years, Clean Up Kenya has expanded its operations and now addresses issues such as “gaps in public sanitation regulatory frameworks, inadequate investment in waste management infrastructure for both solid and liquid waste, improper management of commissioned dumpsites,” among others. 

The organisation engages in robust advocacy efforts in order to institute systemic changes by providing detailed policy recommendations to lawmakers in all levels of government and pushing for corporate accountability for the waste and pollution produced by companies’ operations. 

Clean Up Kenya places a specific focus on the sanitation rights of the urban poor, whose neighborhoods are often designated as locations for massive dump sites despite having meager resources and inadequate sewerage and waste collection infrastructure. The organisation’s large-scale campaigns to raise public awareness of the issues of pollution and sanitation, and its circulation of specific cases involving sanitation rights and pollution, have so far led to significant interventions and positive actions by the government. 

In addition to its advocacy work, the organisation runs several other flagship projects, including several community outreach programs, children-focused projects designed to educate and empower kids under 13 to become future leaders on the issue of sanitation, and an initiative to shut down illegal dump sites across Kenya. 

Clean Up Kenya collaborates closely with other organisations, both national and international, as well as with community leaders, policy makers, and private citizens in order to ensure a wide-ranging shift in attitude and institute meaningful changes across geographical areas and socio-economic demographics. Its goal is to expand its work throughout Africa, and has already launched initiatives in Ghana in 2018 and in Uganda in 2019.

Visit the Clean Up Kenya website to learn more about their work and mission, join their growing coalition of supporters, inquire about collaboration options, make a donation or support their fundraising efforts. 

You may also help spread the word about the pollution crisis in Kenya and Clean Up Kenya’s crucial efforts to tackle it on your social media channels, using the hashtag #cleanupkenya. 

Image: muiadominic