Assessing The Impact Of Nestle Nigeria’s Partnership With Wecyclers

In a bid to ensure good health, socio-economic growth, environmental sustainability and the prosperity of the people, Nestle Nigeria has continued to partner with various institutions, individuals and companies for the establishment of and ensuring effective and efficient waste management mechanism that will not only save the planet but also become a means for wealth creation.

In order to become more environmentally friendly, Nestle is committed to using sustainably managed and reviewable resources, operate more efficiently, achieve zero waste disposal, and improve water management even as it continues with initiatives that reduce food loss and waste as well as preserve our forests, oceans and environment generally.

As an environmentally friendly establishment, Nestle is striving to continuously improve its operational efficiency and environmental performance by complying with Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG).

As a proponent for environmental sustainability, the good food, good life company has introduced various initiatives and also went into partnership with various entities such as the Wecyclers to ensure sustainable environment that promotes prosperity and good health for all.

Another initiative of Nestle Nigeria is the company’s partnership with the media through its annual special training for journalists covering health/nutrition, agriculture, environment and business/economy.

The programme was initiated by Nestle Nigeria in 2019 and organised yearly in partnership with the Lagos Business School Sustainability Centre (LBSSC).
So far, about 200 journalists in the above mentioned beats have been trained on how to properly and effectively report their beats to raise awareness on the need for people to eat nutritious food for healthy living as well as preserve the environment.

From the testimonials of the journalists who have benefited from this training which is aimed at ensuring good health and environmental sustainability themed “Advancing Nutrition, Health and Environmental Awareness through the Media,” the impact is unprecedented.

Interestingly, part of the 2022 journalists training was the experiential tour to Werecylers factory and Kiosks at Ebute Metta and Obalande respectively with a closing party at the Lagos Business School at Lekki, Ajah.

Addressing a battalion of journalists at Nestle Corporate Office at Ilupeju Industrial Avenue, before commencement of the tour, Mrs Edidiong Peters, Public Affairs Specialist, Nestlé Nigeria, stressed the importance of their partnership with the media and why Nestle as a corporate entity is very keen about environmental sustainability.

“We are really delighted to have the media with us as we talk about collaboration with the Lagos Business School (LBS) Sustainability Center, in tackling plastic pollution and our partnership with Wecyclers. This is our own contribution in addressing plastic pollution in Nigeria and protecting the environment as a company.

“As a company, we recently launched the Employees Plastics Collection Scheme, to encourage our staff to bring the plastics and recyclables to the office. And in collaboration with Wecyclers, we ensure that the plastics are received and properly recycled and the staff get paid for their contribution,” Mrs Peters said.

She said that the partnership was strategic to address plastic pollution in the country as part of Nestlé’s contribution to promote environmental sustainability among Nigerians.

“At Nestlé, we are committed to protecting the environment for future generations and more of our actions in sustainability efforts will come up from time to time,” Peters said.

On her part, Ms Theresa Akpoveso, Senior Associate, Sustainability Center LBS, said the partnership would create more awareness on the dangers of plastic pollution for Nigerians and how it should be managed.

Accordingly, she said, the LBS Sustainability Center in partnership with Nestlé wants to raise the awareness of environmental issues, nutrition and wellness.

Speaking at the Wecylers facility, the Business Development Manager, Esther Fagbo Chibueyim, highlighted the benefits of partnership with Nestle.

She said their partnership is already yielding results as the centre collected about 80 tonnes of recyclables every month through kiosks system while franchise system provided about 75 tonnes.

Mrs. Chibueyim said the partnership has helped them to expand their operations and also create more jobs as well as relieved the environment of plastic pollution.

‘’The need for us to recycle these materials is very important. Our partnership with Nestle is for us to have collection kiosks in communities where we will be able to collect materials.

Last year we started the franchise system with Nestle and today we have about eight franchises; two of these franchises belong to Nestle. Each of these franchises employs about 50 people.’’She said the franchise system operates as a hub system, adding that the system is aimed at empowering the people that are interested in
recycling business to be able to start up the business.

Chibuenyi said Wecyclers have monetary compensation for subscribers who submit plastics at their various collection points across the country, adding that a lot of women are already earning a living from the scheme.

According to her, ‘’currently we have five collection kiosks in different locations. We also have digital Apps to facilitate online transaction in waste carton, plastics, paper and cardboard with different payment categories.’’

Chibueyim added that the company also have mobile trucks and tricycles use for collection of material from communities.

She said collection of materials is the major problem in the recycling value chain in Nigeria. ‘’We are not collecting enough. We are still looking for more partners. We need more collectors to collect from the source and that is why collection is very important.’’

She said the company has created both direct and indirect job opportunities for Nigerians.

Also speaking, Head, Operations, Rafiat Ayoola, said “Wecyclers, as a company, we have over 200 staff and that is aside franchise and each franchise employs about fifty people directly.There is also indirect job because there are people that take this as a means of livelihood, the only thing they do is to pick plastic and bring to us and earn money. We have over 20,000 subscribers who are earning money from us on regular basis,’’ she added.

“Wecyclers has established relationships with the Lagos State Government through the Lagos Waste Management Agency and they have supported our expansion into many previously unreached Local Government Areas in Lagos State. With their support, we have secured land for our recycling hubs and have started community awareness programs.

“In addition, we have built relationships with corporate sponsors who believe in our vision of becoming the largest, most profitable, and most successful recycling company in Africa and empowering the continent to be the global leader in recycling.

“They have enabled us to run sustainability focused student competitions, establish a franchise program, a conduct large-scale cleanup and community outreach programs.

“Our partners also provide strategic advice and bolster the strength of our team with staff who passionate about our work and willing to devote some of their time to advancing our initiatives. We are fortunate that we continually meet forward-thinking executives and donors who believe in our work.

Wecyclers is a for-profit social enterprise that promotes environmental sustainability, socioeconomic development, and community health by providing convenient recycling services in densely populated urban neighborhoods. We give households a chance to generate value from their waste and provide a reliable supply of raw material to the local recycling industry.

“Wecyclers addresses the challenge of urban waste. When we began in 2012, only 40% of the city’s waste was collected and only a mere 13% was recycled. People living in slum conditions without formal waste collections are at risk of property damage; the spread of diseases such as malaria, cholera, and dysentery; and undue psychological stress. Improperly disposed trash tends to clog gutters and drainage canals leading to floods during rainfall.

“This trash can also create stagnant water pools that are ideal conditions for mosquitoes and other disease vectors to breed. Unmanaged trash heaps also create a burden for community residents who are forced to navigate obstructed roadways and deal with the smoke from frequent trash fires.”

Nestle, as Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) compliant, was in 2021, and rated ‘AA’ by the MSCI ESG Research for its performance on ESG issues.

Some of the actions taken by the company in its bid to save the environment include transformation of its portfolio to launch more products with a better environmental impact that contribute to a healthier diet, scaling up initiatives in agriculture to support regenerative agriculture and reduce emissions and using 100 per cent
electricity on all its sites and fight against plastic pollution amongst others.

The company is also raising awareness on how people can use their recyclables (waste materials) through proper disposal methods to make wealth. Today many Nigerians are benefitting from this initiative.