A community waste management start-up in Malawi

Established waste management industries employ thousands of people and provide many
interesting and valuable jobs. Typical roles include sales and marketing, collection and processing,
and health and safety – to name just a few.

So it is always a great pleasure to hear from entrepreneurs around the world who are pioneering
waste management where there is none, creating jobs and improving people’s lives.

One such champion is Chikumbutso (Chiku) Chikoti in Lilongwe, Malawi, who got in touch after
reading the WasteAid toolkit. Chiku is developing a waste and recycling start-up company and kindly
agreed to share his experiences.

A few years ago, tired of seeing unmanaged waste accumulating in his town and polluting the local
rivers, Chiku felt compelled to do something to bring about long-term change. Through hard work
and perseverance, Chiku has:

 Informed the community about the value of waste management.

 Provided ways for people to dispose of their waste safely.
 Protected the local environment from waste-related pollution.
 Generated employment opportunities for young people.
 Created and sold useful products made from waste.

In Chiku’s own words, “We are using sustainable waste management to reduce our burden on the
environment and to give something positive back to the community.”

Starting from scratch

Chiku had been running a small composting operation for a couple of years in his parents’ back yard,
under the company name ComFert Ltd. In November 2017, he had the opportunity to relocate to the
Zingwangwa Sanitation Centre, known locally as the Zing San Centre. It soon became clear that the
previous managers had not been active or visible within the community.

With no system in place and no communication with local residents, waste had been left to pile up
at the centre, causing an unsightly and unhealthy scene.

While the site had historically been designated for waste management, there was such little activity
that locals thought it was a foreign-owned warehouse, and over time the site had become a
dumping ground.

The first challenge was to address the mindset of the people; to change dumping habits and to find
alternatives to their waste dumping.

Chiku says, “As anyone would know, nobody in a right mental capacity would want to live next to an
unmanaged waste site and the same is true here too.

“Everybody here wants their environment clean and sorted out but without available options to
help address their needs, coming to them and telling them to stop dumping their waste in x, y, z spot
will be returned with a negative reaction because of lack of options.”
To illustrate the point, Chiku recalls one time when he was explaining his goals and ambitions for the
site to a resident, when a woman casually came and dumped her waste in front of them, with a look
that said “Well, what can I do?”

Chiku says that funding is also a challenge. He has used his own money and entrepreneurial spirit (he
is a chef by training) to build the company from the ground up, giving training courses to earn extra
money. His fluctuating income, however, means paying wages and keeping equipment maintained
can be difficult.

“Our pushcart is currently in need of repair,” explains Chiku, “and without it, waste collection has
halted. Meanwhile the available space at the Zing San Centre severely limits how much waste we
can process.”

Despite these growing pains, ComFert is a fine example of community-led waste management.

Step-by-step

“Our first priority was to get the community to notice that change was happening. First, we engaged
the elders of the community to introduce ourselves and our ambitions. The well-respected elders in
turn addressed the community, albeit on a small scale (see statement below from Mr J Matuta, Aide
and Advisor to The Chief of Zingwangwa).

“Next, we set about getting our own house in order, implementing a three step process called
Removals, Limitations and Replacements,” recounts Chiku.

“Removals: We removed all the trash we could from the Zing San Centre so the area became cleaner
and more presentable. This meant we could to demonstrate to the community that we mean
business, and we could use the extra space to start sorting and weighing waste materials.

“Next was Limitations: We fenced the area with low-cost materials to prevent further waste
dumping, which had an immediate impact on people’s behaviour.

“Finally, Replacements: We installed low-cost bins (waste containers) at popular dumping spots. This
gave people somewhere specific to dispose of their waste, reducing the amount of litter and
improving the appearance of the area. This also made the process of collecting the waste much
easier.”

The bins are currently for mixed waste, but once Chiku has the funds he intends to double the
number of bins to six and introduce separate bins for plastics and metals, organics, and non-
recyclable mixed waste.

The shortage of space at the Zing San Centre means Chiku continues to carry out the composting
activities behind his parents’ home. ComFert hires a truck to deliver the material to be composted,
and returns the finished product to Zing San for packaging and sales. They are also experimenting
with biogas and making charcoal briquettes.

Keys to success and future plans

“A great key to success,” says Chiku, “lies in the involvement of key stakeholders, uniting hands and
tackling waste together. When we work as a community it is possible to make great change in a
short time, and to maintain proper sustainable waste management systems.”

Chiku and his colleagues hosted 200 Form 1 students from Zingwangwa Secondary School. They took
the time to inform the children of the serious long-term problems caused by a lack of waste
management, before demonstrating the processes that ComFert undertakes.

Having proved their community spirit, work ethic, and the benefits that come from managing waste
properly, Comfert are now seeking corporate sponsorship to expand their business.

Chiku says, “We invited 12 large companies in banking, plastic and food manufacturing, and
telecommunications, to sponsor an ‘Environmental Drive’. The idea was to involve government
schools in the area, community members and the established businesses... but we received zero
response.

“That’s why we scaled it down to just a day of training involving one school. From this training, we
noted that the kids were actively engaged, interested and seemed concerned about the situation but
without the means to address the situation, they expressed feeling powerless to do so.”

To scale up, Chiku and his team recommend work in zones, as the whole area is huge. Zones allow
for effective team and performance management.

“We would analyse the waste situation in each zone, to see which waste materials are generated
and the most appropriate collection and recycling services. For example, we could set up a biogas
plant where there is a high amount of sewage flow, and a charcoal briquette plant where there is
ample woody waste.

“Each zone would employ four or five young apprentices to carry out the activities and liaise with
HQ, from where the products would be sold.”

ComFert is still seeking corporate sponsorship to grow their waste management enterprise. Any
company offering financial support would benefit not only from a cleaner environment (which is
good for business), but also from increased brand recognition via signage on pushcarts, bins and
uniforms, and mentions in promotional brochures, on local radio and via community theatre
performances.

Chiku and the team at ComFert are leading from the front, and it is only a matter of time until more
affluent and influential community members agree to support their worthy initiative.

When a community’s waste is managed properly, everyone benefits. From school children to shop
keepers, residents of all neighbourhoods can improve their health and economy by sorting their
waste and supporting waste-wise entrepreneurs.

Transcript of comments by Mr J Matuta, Aide and Advisor to The Chief of Zingwangwa:

 “Hello. My name is James Matuta, aide to the Chief of Zingwangwa. I would like to talk about
the work that the sanitation centre has done in this area since they started operations but I
would like to start by talking about the state before.

Previously, our community just used to throw wastes within the river and surrounding areas
because of no options. With the introduction of this organisation though, our attitudes have
changed and we trust that we shall see a much more sanitary area.

With our president stressing for cleaner environments in all towns, we are confident that
with the introduction of the sanitation centre, our area will be clean and because of that, we
have welcomed the sanitation centre with both hands open as a community.

A big welcome in the community is the introduction of the bins which have helped in giving
us an option with our waste disposals. With that, it is helping in keeping the river clean and
in this rainy season, it will no doubt lessen the danger of cholera in this area.

We understand that at the beginning of any program challenges will be faced, but we as a
community will try our best to make sure that the sanitation centre is a success and to get
used to it.

As with the introduction of compost, our community is very happy with that addition as we
aren’t able to afford much of these fertilisers and as such, we are ecstatic to hear and see
about such manure.

But not just to think of Zingwangwa only, we wish to see more sanitation centres in other
areas as well as they can be very fruitful to the community.

To finish, we hope that the environment changes such that we get back the waters that used
to draw pigeons to the river everyday at 6am and 6pm. A sign of excellent water indeed!!
Thank you.”

And with that, I would like to conclude by saying that while we have faced challenges of which some
are more manageable than others, the reaction from the community at large has been positive and
spurs us on to continue undertaking the job we do, albeit that we lack support from those who can
make big differences quickly.

With that said, we thank you for your time in reading this and wish that you have been updated of
the operations being undertaken in the area. Thank You.

Sincerely,
Chiku Chikoti
Managing Director
ComFert Ltd

If you would like to support Chiku and ComFert, please write to zoe@wasteaid.org.uk and we will
gladly put you in touch.