Story by Owen Mandovha
GOVERNMENT efforts to position Zimbabwe as a regional waste management hub are gaining momentum, with the GeoPomona Waste Management project creating employment and entrepreneurial opportunities, particularly for women.
On a daily basis, hundreds of trucks collect refuse through a door-to-door system and clear illegal dumpsites across Harare before transporting the waste to the Pomona processing facility. At the sorting plant, workers separate aluminium cans, plastics and other recyclable materials, a process central to value addition in the waste management chain.
Many of the workers, the majority of them women, say the project has provided a lifeline after years of unemployment.
“I can now feed my family and send my children to school after years without work,” one employee said, expressing gratitude for the opportunity and the skills acquired in waste management.
The project has also attracted the attention of policymakers seeking to strengthen Zimbabwe’s skills base in the sector. Officials from the Ministry of Skills Audit and Development recently toured the facility to assess the competencies required to drive growth in the industry.
Permanent Secretary Ambassador Rudo Chitiga said the visit was aimed at creating a skills database to support Zimbabwe’s ambition of becoming a waste management hub in the region.
GeoPomona Executive Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer Dr Dilesh Nguwaya said the initiative continues to generate much-needed jobs, while opening space for entrepreneurs who purchase recyclable materials for resale to end-users.
The company is now moving towards the next phase of the project, the construction of a waste-to-energy plant expected to generate at least 22 megawatts of electricity, further enhancing value addition and contributing to the national grid.
