Encouraging a change of mind-set from the schoolroom onwards, to a more responsible attitude as an adult. This is the objective of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which has initiated a competition on sustainable waste management in Ghana. The multilateral development agency of the United Nations (UN), whose missions are the eradication of poverty and the reduction of inequalities and exclusion, published the results of this competition on July 28th, 2021. Out of 30 green projects submitted by secondary schools in Ghana, only three were unanimously approved by the jury.
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St. Catherine Senior High School received the first prize of $4,000 (about 24,000 Ghanaian cedis) from UNDP. The school, located in the town of Agbakope in the Volta region of Ghana, plans to reuse wastewater from the students’ baths to irrigate gardens and tree plantations. To ensure good agricultural yields at St. Catherine Senior High School, a project to convert organic waste into fertiliser is also envisaged.
Solar energy for waste management
Obuasi Senior High Technical School has proposed a working prototype of a waste bin for automatic waste separation. The bin is powered by solar energy. The $3,000 (over 17,900 Ghanaian cedis) in funding that the school, located in the Ashanti region, is now receiving will enable it to develop its solution. Obuasi Senior High Technical School also hopes to contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Ghana through its innovation.
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Methodist Senior High School, located in the Western Region, advocates recycling as a solution for the sustainable disposal of its waste. The school’s self-sorting waste bin earned it third place in the UNDP award with a prize of US$2,000 (about 12,000 Ghanaian cedis). For its competition on sustainable waste management in Ghana, UNDP received support from the Coca-Cola Foundation (TCCF), the subsidiary of soft drink giant Coca-Cola.
Inès Magoum