The Lagos State government has reinforced its commitment to advanced waste conversion by signing three separate Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with reputable companies.
Addressing investors and delegates at the 11th Lagos International Climate Change Summit held at the Continental Hotel, Victoria Island, the Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr Tokunbo Wahab, said the government is determined to move from a linear waste management system, “pick and dump,” to a more sustainable waste-to-wealth model.
He said the new MoUs represent a major step in reducing the volume of waste that ends up in landfills.
Wahab explained that one of the companies, HAK Waste Limited, proposed establishing a circular beverage container recycling and recovery system through a deposit refund mechanism anchored in the Extended Producer’s Responsibility Mechanism (EPRM).
He added that the proposal reflects investors’ confidence in the state’s EPRM policy on waste reduction and includes the creation of a packaging circularity ecosystem.
Another agreement, he said, involves the establishment of a world-class tyre collection and recycling facility for end-of-life tyres in Lagos.
“Haggai Logistics Limited proposes to build a first-of-its-kind tyre recycling plant to process end-of-life tyres through a fully automated waste tyre recycling factory and environmentally sound recycling technologies,” Wahab said.
According to him, the third MoU, signed with Mondo 4 Africa, seeks to convert non-recyclable plastic waste into sustainable fuel and other valuable resources using eco-friendly technology.
He reiterated the state’s commitment to continuous public sensitisation on waste sorting at the source, stressing that residents must begin to see waste as a resource rather than refuse.
“We are trying to change the culture of seeing waste as waste, but as a resource. We are also working to shift people’s mindsets from practices that have persisted for decades,” he said.
Wahab noted that the government is addressing key financial and environmental challenges simultaneously, particularly as they relate to Lagos’s vulnerability as a coastal state.
Speaking on the new MoUs, the Managing Director of the Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), Dr Muyiwa Gbadegesin, said the initiative forms part of the agency’s efforts to improve the state’s environmental sustainability.
He stressed that neither the state government nor LAWMA alone can manage the large volume of solid waste generated daily, hence the need for private sector collaboration to turn waste into wealth.
In their remarks, the company executives expressed appreciation and pledged to support Lagos State in achieving its waste-to-wealth goals.
Also present at the event were the Special Adviser on Environment, Mr Olakunle Rotimi-Akodu; Permanent Secretary, Office of Environmental Services, Dr Omobolaji Gaji; Permanent Secretary, Office of Drainage Services, Mr Mahamood Adegbite; and LAWMA’s Executive Director (Finance), Mr Kunle Adebiyi, among others.
