Turning Waste into Wealth: Mr. Green Africa’s Game-Changing Approach to Plastic Circularity
This January, as we kick off the year with impactful initiatives, we’re spotlighting our Fourth Pillar of the Water+ Thesis: Plastic and Solid Waste Circularity.
Plastic and Solid Waste Circularity is a cornerstone of Water Unite Impact’s Water+ thesis, playing a vital role in our mission to ensure clean water for people and the planet. This pillar emphasizes sustainable practices that safeguard and restore ecosystems by embracing the principles of the circular economy. By focusing on reusing and recycling plastic and solid waste, we aim to reduce pollution, alleviate pressure on natural resources, and drive innovative solutions for a cleaner, more sustainable future. This commitment also extends to protecting our oceans, where rising sea levels and pollution from mismanaged waste pose severe threats to marine ecosystems. Through innovative solutions, we strive to create a cleaner, more sustainable future, ensuring the health of both our water systems and the planet's oceans.
Linear economies have led to significant plastic waste challenges, notably the pollution of rivers and waterways. Africa alone generates 19 million tonnes of urban plastic waste annually (WWF, 2022). Fast-moving consumer goods businesses (FMCG) are beginning to act by committing to using primarily recycled plastics instead of virgin materials. While this is a step in the right direction, ethically sourcing recycled plastics remains challenging. The recycling industry has long been plagued by exploitation, with waste pickers at the bottom of the chain being underpaid by intermediaries and brokers who claim a disproportionate share of profits.
Mr. Green Africa (MGA), our focus for the spotlight, is a Kenyan enterprise transforming waste into valuable resources while supporting social, environmental, and economic changes. MGA addresses waste and exploitation challenges by creating a transparent value chain that ethically sources recycled plastic waste while ensuring waste pickers receive fair compensation. Their model revolves around collecting waste from both waste pickers and businesses, transporting it to their recycling facilities, and producing high-quality recycled plastics. Through this approach, MGA not only mitigates plastic waste but also empowers communities, promoting dignity and fairness across the supply chain.
“If we look at the scale of the issue, such funding [as Water Unite Impact's] will allow us to bring it to the next level and prove the case that you can do local value addition by empowering the people that are involved in the collection, ultimately creating better livelihoods"
Keiran Smith, CEO and Co-Founder of Mr. Green Africa.
MGA offers a transparent value chain that sources plastic waste ethically while ensuring waste pickers receive fair pay. By leveraging innovative technology to streamline supply chains and eliminate intermediaries, MGA improves efficiency and margins in the recycled plastics industry. Their model involves collecting waste from waste pickers and businesses, processing it in cutting-edge recycling facilities to produce high-quality plastics, and selling them to major FMCG brands. Profits are then equitably redistributed across the supply chain.
MGA is already significantly impacting the environment and society by reducing plastic waste, generating employment, and creating sustainable livelihoods. With Water Unite Impact’s investment, MGA is expanding its East African flagship hub, strengthening its collection network to integrate consumers, and entering new markets and regions. By 2025, MGA projects to recycle 30,000 metric tonnes of plastic waste annually, connect 500,000 consumers, create over 250 direct jobs, empower more than 10,000 waste collectors, and save 30 million kilograms of CO2 emissions per year.
MGA exemplifies the power of a circular economy. By turning waste into wealth, they protect our planet and improve communities, demonstrating that sustainable practices can drive both environmental and social progress. Together with partners like Mr. Green Africa, Water Unite is proud to support solutions that create progress and inspire a future where waste is a resource and sustainability is a shared mission.
Photo credit: Alexander James-Aylin