Recycling for environmental and social benefits

Enver is one of the main garbage collectors in his community, and his backyard has served as the main point of preserving neighborhood waste. “was a very difficult situation with all the garbage in our backyard, while family and children lived at home. It was very difficult because we didn't even have cars, and our waste was unbroken and raw, so we couldn't sell it at any good price”. Enver reminds us of old times.

Now Enver, along with other experienced crowders from his community, is leading a newly constructed garbage dump that has a higher capacity for collection than his home yard. This space also has the right equipment for scrap processing and wrapping, enabling collectors to be more competitive in the market and earn more money from their work.

Collection centre manager Naser Brahimi says nothing can stop their success, as Enver and all the others who are directly employed in the centre are experienced collectors who are well aware of the waste collection work. “The only difference is that now we have modern equipment and collection centre enables much more profits for us and for all collectors who bring the waste that collects to us” every day, he says.

Enver and Naser work at one of the two new social companies using the unified concept of waste management and equipment to turn waste into valuables. They are functional as a result of the project aimed at improving solid waste management and creating new economic opportunities for Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian communities.

The business strategy for collection centres is designed so that 200 families, which will benefit from the project, take full ownership of social companies and treat these companies as their own. Wastedrops are fully equipped with modern technique as spare units that enable good machine functioning.

Both waste stations in Fushe Kosovo and Pec are built thanks to the European Union-funded project and will have full-time employees working on waste management and recycling activities. Moreover, these companies will increase awareness among public officials and the general public of the need to introduce the concept of collecting separated from municipalities and separating it from the source.