Nestlé Ghana Limited has organised a workshop on hygiene, health, and wellness for 60 plastic waste pickers and collectors in Accra.

The gesture according to Nestlé, is to ensure that the waste pickers are abreast with practical knowledge to keep them well and safe as they work together to contribute to rid Ghanaian communities of plastic waste.

Speaking at the workshop, Margaret-Mary Tohouenou, Regulatory and Scientific Affairs Manager at Nestlé said, “the workshop was designed to highlight the risk associated with plastic waste collection and need to do their work in a safe manner especially, during the Covid-19 pandemic.

She empasised that applying precautionary measures to stay safe at all times while collecting plastics within various communities in Ghana is critical to their work.

President of the Pure Water Waste Collectors Association, Elvis Oppong expressed gratitude to Nestlé for continuously supporting them and enabling them to improve their collection rates in communities.

Nestlé Ghana signed a partnership agreement with the Association with oversight of the Ministry of Environment Science Technology and Innovation.

Since the inception of the partnership in October 2019, Nestle Ghana has donated 20 tricycles and helmets, 2,000 waste picking tools, 1,500 pairs of gloves and 1,220 nose masks to the Association.

These have enabled the collection of 859 tons of plastic waste for recycling.

The partnership contributes to the overall purpose of the Ghana Recycling Initiative by Private Enterprises (GRIPE) of which Nestlé is a founding member in Ghana.

By 2025, Nestlé envisions to have all of its packaging 100% recyclable or reusable.