Context to the Policymakers’ Toolkit
Plastic recycling is a critical global challenge.
With over 400 million tonnes of plastic produced annually and degradation timelines spanning hundreds of years, the environmental and societal impacts of plastic waste are staggering. Many regions, including East Africa, face obstacles such as limited access to modern technology, frequent power outages, and inadequate waste management systems.
This Policymakers’ Toolkit distils learnings identified by the Flipflopi team into actionable steps for policymakers, industry associations, and technical consultants, offering insights into challenges, solutions, and interventions to enhance recycling systems.
This toolkit is designed for:
- Policymakers: Regional and national decision-makers responsible for implementing recycling and waste management policies.
- Industry associations: Groups advocating for sustainable practices in manufacturing and recycling.
- Technical consultants: Professionals advising clients on improving recycling operations and policies.
Why this Toolkit?
Recycling and reintegrating plastic into a circular economy is not optional – it is a necessity.
Efforts to address this issue are already underway by companies, NGOs, and initiatives operating in diverse local contexts. However, effective solutions require collaboration between manufacturers, recyclers, and governing bodies to:
- Establish effective and cohesive policies, structures, and systems.
- Implement annual improvement targets to steadily increase the percentage of materials recycled.
- Reduce dependency on single-use plastics.
- Reduce dependencies on societally costly imports and build local economies by promoting circular systems.
We want to explain what we found out in our specific context because we believe that similar issues do prevail in many parts of the world, in East Africa and Kenya, and we should all do what is in our power to improve on the status quo. We call upon you to exercise your power, and your responsibility to improve the governing laws, policies and structures.
The Flipflopi context
The Flipflopi project is based in Lamu, an archipelago off the northern coast of Kenya. Lamu faces significant infrastructural challenges, including:
- Logistical hurdles: Transport relies entirely on boats.
- Power outages: Frequent interruptions hinder operations.
- Limited waste recycling systems: Flipflopi’s self-built system is the only functioning option.
Despite these constraints, Flipflopi operates successfully in a low-tech environment by using older, affordable machinery and emphasising community engagement.
Our experiences can provide invaluable insights for adapting recycling systems to similar contexts.
