“Turning Waste into Prosperity”
After almost one year since the partnership between Witzenberg and Exchange started, our coach, Bert Bortier, traveled to South Africa to follow up on the outcomes and the progress of this programme and to determine the future needs for expertise and the specific contribution of Exchange and other actors.
It was mutually decided that the focus of the collaboration will remain on increasing awareness and separation of waste at source. With the MRF and drop-off points planned in 2021 and 2022, a big step will be taken to achieve "separation at source". In the meantime Witzenberg Municipality will take small cost-effective steps before the MRF/drop-off points are built.
Moreover, the Municipality has committed to setup a “recycling forum” which should improve the disconnect between the Municipality and the recycling companies. This waste forum allows good practices, brings transparency, provides the Municipality with insight into capacities for recycling, and enables the Witzenberg municipal head to raise issues at a higher level (e.g. the provincial Waste Forum). Moreover, during Bert's visit to Witzenberg several visits took place which give a better insight on separation of waste at source.