Mining & Trade News

Following the launch of a national cleanup campaign by President Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera, the Ministry of Energy plans to boost energy production in the country by promoting recycling of wastes into various forms of energy.

The energy ministry says the launch will help put in place waste management systems that support use of biomass for household and industrial productions.

Spokesperson for the Ministry, Saidi Banda, says the ministry is in the process of reviewing its Strategic Plan to reflect new developments in line with the Energy Policy 2018 and the Malawi Renewable Energy Strategy 2017.

“The ministry will facilitate processes to remove taxes on waste-to-energy production equipment. It will also facilitate trainings for small entrepreneurs and youth groups among others,” he explains adding that the initiative gives Malawians an opportunity to convert garbage from landfills into raw material for renewable energy like biogas, electricity and briquettes.

Banda says the ministry is currently encouraging companies to start generating power from waste in an effort to reduce the amount of waste the country produces.

A UN report reveals that one-third of the food produced world-wide every year is lost or wasted. In Malawi, it is reported that fresh food waste is a major health and urban management problem, especially in open-air markets which produce a great deal of waste.

Meanwhile, as the U.N.’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development has set targets to reduce the amount of food waste by half, Blantyre City Council transports organic wastes like over-ripe tomatoes, banana peels and cabbage leaves which are generated each day from the city’s open markets to turn it into organic compost which is later sold to farmers and gardeners.

President Chakwera introduced the National Cleanup Day campaign with an aim of curbing littering and to promoting cleanliness and safe environments.

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