By Tamba Borbor (Public Relations Officer WHH Sierra Leone)
The Waste Management Project of Welthungerhilfe Sierra Leone has on Wednesday 17th and Friday 19th May 2023 conducted One-day Trainings on Waste Management Monitoring Strategy Implementation in Kenema and Makeni Cities respectively.
The two Trainings were conducted for staffs of the City Councils of Kenema and Makeni that are involved in the management of waste in their respective municipalities.
Speaking at the opening of the Training in Kenema, the Chief Administrator of the Kenema City Council (KCC) –Joseph Gando expressed profound gratitude to WHH for conducting such a training aimed at building the capacity of staff of the Council, Waste Management Department, Metropolitan Police, and others working in the waste sector.
“It is no secret that Kenema City Council is moving in the right trajectory when it comes to waste management which is a critical component of our service delivery. As a Council, one of our core mandates is to maximize revenue generation and service delivery to our taxpayers. A training of this nature is geared towards improving and capacitating key players in the waste management sector,” Joseph Gando stated.
He stressed that the training is coming at the right time as the population of the Kenema City is going to increase because of the coming elections which consequently increases waste in the communities.
Gando recommended that such training should be conducted on a quarterly basis to sharpen the skills and knowledge of staff and those involved with managing waste in the municipality.
Dr. John Williams, the Head of WHH Waste Management Project stated that the trainings in Kenema and Makeni are about data management in relation to waste collection and disposal.
“These training will provide the skills and knowledge needed to measure the progress made in recycling, composting and other activities relating to waste,” Dr. Williams stated.
He noted that there is wealth in waste management and urged participants to take advantage of the financial opportunities lurking at the dumpsites.
The Deputy Chief Administrator of the Makeni City Council (MCC), Abdul Mansour acknowledged that indeed there is wealth in waste management. He thanked the Head of WHH Waste Management Project for opening their eyes to the opportunities that abound in the waste sector.
He urged WHH to provide the trainings and knowledge to the Council to empower them undertake the tasks themselves as all projects are time bound.
“With the rights skills and knowledge, we can make millionaires from waste I n our communities in Makeni City,” Mr. Mansour stated.
The Development Planning Officer at the MCC, Yusifu Tejan Kamara thanked WHH for undertaking the training and noted that as the Council is a sub-national Government, it is their responsibility to provide services to the people. He noted that WHH has impacted Makeni City a lot through its previous and current project.
Mr. Kamara maintained that data collection in the area of waste management is critical to assessing progress made or otherwise; urging participants to take advantage of the knowledge to be gained during the one-day training.
The Monitoring and Evaluation Officer of WHH Waste Management Project, Philip Tengbeh facilitated both trainings in Kenema and Makeni respectively with support from the Head of Waste Management Project- Dr. John Williams and WHH Waste Technicians of Kenema and Makeni Cities, Patrick Tengbeh and George Tucker respectively.
