Somalis turn a profit by transforming their scrap plastic
A man sorts plastic litter collected from a garbage dump to be recycled into roofing tiles at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal Omar
MOGADISHU (Reuters) - As the rubbish built up on the rubble of Mogadishu's wrecked streets, Ahmed Abdullah saw a business opportunity.
He recruited a team of workers - many of them refugees from Somalia's long conflict - and sent them out to collect plastic bags, bottles and wrappers to turn into roof tiles and other recycled goods.
Employees carry roofing tiles made from recycled plastic litter at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal Omar
"They cannot break, you see," Abdullah said has he threw some of his tiles onto the floor to show their strength. "They are made of the recycled plastics and soil."
Years of fierce fighting in the coastal city have destroyed its infrastructure and left the surviving buildings pocked with bullet holes.
The cash-strapped government is struggling to control a vast, divided country where Islamist militants from the al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab group still launch regular attacks on the capital.
A woman receives payment for delivering plastic litter to be recycled into roofing tiles at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal Omar
Regular rubbish collection is way down the state's list of priorities.
"A lot of rubbish like plastics, paper bags ... are thrown outside the city," said Abdullah. When the piles get too big, he added, people start dumping it in the ocean.
So, in June 2018, he and others founded their company, Green Plastic.
A man shreds plastic litter collected from a garbage dump to be recycled into roofing tiles at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal Omar
Muslimo Aden Ali said he gets paid 3,000 Somali shillings ($5.18) for every kg of waste he brings in.
"We carry the rubbish on our heads and backs. It is a nice job. We survive on this," he said.
Maryan Abdullahi, a 35-year-old mother displaced by fighting, said she walks more than 10 km (7 miles) a day searching for plastic.
A woman searches for plastic litter at a garbage dump to be recycled into roofing tiles at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal Omar
"I cannot sleep at night because of back ache but this is the only way I can raise food for my children."
(The story was refiled to remove an extraneous 'i' throughout from name of company manager)
Women carry bags of plastic litter collected from a garbage dump to be recycled into roofing tiles at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal Omar
(Additional reporting by Abdi Sheikh; Writing by George Obulutsa; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
A man shovels shredded plastic litter to be recycled into roofing tiles at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal OmarEmployees handle roofing tiles made from recycled plastic litter at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal OmarA woman sorts plastic litter collected from a garbage dump to be recycled into roofing tiles at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal OmarEmployees fill bags with shredded plastic litter to be made into roofing tiles at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal OmarA man cuts plastic litter before shredding it and recycling it into roofing tiles at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal OmarEmployees mix recycled plastic litter to make roofing tiles at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal OmarAn employee sorts roofing tiles made from recycled plastic litter at the Envirogreen recycling plant in Mogadishu, Somalia January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Feisal Omar
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