Burundi’s geography is a harmonious patchwork of diverse ecosystems, from mountainous forests to sweeping plains. For 11.5 million people, this charming landscape is home.
However, environmental and human wellbeing has been under threat for years, partly due to improper chemicals and waste management. A lack of resources and coordination around the issue has led to social, health, and environmental issues like disease and pollution.
The Government of Burundi is now enacting a plan to tackle this issue through an ambitious partnership with the Chemicals and Waste Management Programme of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
The challenge
Chemicals and waste are a common part of everyday life, but their improper management can lead to human health problems and environmental degradation. This is illustrated by the case of Bujumbura, Burundi’s economic capital. There, city officials have struggled to manage the massive amounts of waste generated by the city’s nearly 400,000 citizens.
Only one landfill serves Bujumbura, and the uncontrolled, open-air site hosts a mix of unsorted municipal solid waste. The landfill threatens human lives, with dangerous levels of heavy metals leaching out of the waste and cases of cholera in people who collect food and other items from the site. It also pollutes nearby Lake Tanganyika, one of the world’s largest, longest, deepest and oldest lakes, which also provides over 90 per cent of Bujumbura’s water.
Around the country, fragmented and inadequate coordination contribute to similar problems, which will only increase in magnitude and direness as the population continues to rise.
A circular economy
Burundi’s ambitious plan to strengthen its approach to chemicals and waste management involves strengthening the capacity of the government, institutions, businesses and individuals to take part in systemized management under the framework of a circular economy.
The project aims to achieve this by developing a national strategy and action plan, strengthening and enforcing regulations and policies, training those involved in chemicals and waste management, and adapting infrastructure and equipment to handle the amount and type of waste generated.
Implementing a circular economy framework also promises the creation of new, green livelihoods, which will be a boon to the many Burundians who have lost employment due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Leaping forward
Numerous stakeholders are expected to take part in and benefit from the national plan, including:
- Key ministries concerned by chemicals and waste management, such as environment, health, economy and finance, justice, agriculture, labour, and commerce and industry;
- Civil society, such as households, farmers and women’s organizations;
- Labour unions; and
- The private sector, such as restaurants and food retailers.
Central to the strategy, which will be informed by a thorough assessment of needs and capabilities, is a plan to analyze the implications of gender on all proposed policies and activities, with an eye toward accounting for nuances in the experiences of men and women.
Women are disproportionately affected by chemicals and waste, often due to gender-determined occupational roles, so it is crucial to provide them with equal opportunities to develop chemicals and waste management strategies.
At the end of the three-year project, Burundi’s capacity to soundly manage chemicals and waste is expected to significantly improve. The systems put in place will help protect the health of its people and natural resources for years to come.
For further information please contact the Special Programme Secretariat at unepchemicalsspecialprogramme@un.org
