Celebrating Global Recycling Day with the Queens of Ashaiman

Last Monday, March 18th, Safisana celebrated the 7th annual Global Recycling Day, an initiative announced by The Global Recycling Foundation.
This day represents an international moment to emphasize the critical state of the environment that our planet faces. 'Human exploitation of natural resources has started to come at a cost. And not in too long, these natural resources could be completely depleted. The continuous exploitation of natural resources has resulted in the hottest decade on record; high rates of deforestation, rising temperatures, melting of icecaps and large parts of the world on fire', according to the Global Recycling Foundation. 'These issues are not only harmful to the environment but also have a spillover to economic and social problems. Poverty, mass migration, displacement, unemployment, waste and sanitation mismanagement are direct consequences of these ecological challenges.'

Promoting the circular economy

Global Recycling Day serves to highlight and promote circular economy models for production and consumption. Each year, recyclables save over 700 million tonnes of CO2 emissions. It is estimated that by 2030, this number will be increased to 1 billion tonnes. (Global Recycling Foundation, 2024). Safisana has developed a circular model that reproduces biogas and organic fertilizer from organic and fecal waste. As recycling - or more specifically upcycling - is at the heart of Safisana’s activities, Global Recycling Day is a celebration that we highly value.

Safisana’s Global Recycling Day Campaign

Waste segregation Workshop

The Safisana Global Recycling Day Event was held at Ashaiman Main Market, where we collect organic food waste daily for recycling. Daily, we collect around 15 tonnes of organic waste from the local food market for recycling, providing the market vendors with a cleaner and healthier environment.
During the event the Market Queens, women who sell fruits and vegetables at the market, received protective gear and training on how to segregate and recycle market waste.
The workshop was led by Michael Oppong, our Waste Sourcing Manager and was to educate the market women on the importance of proper waste segregation at the source. The organic waste that Safisana collects from the Market Queens is crucial in our process of upcycling and generating renewable energy and organic fertilizer.

Afterwards, the Municipal Chief Executive of Ashaiman Mr. Albert Boakye Okyere held a speech about the importance of recycling and the impact of Safisana’s presence in Ashaiman. Our general manager, Elikplim Asilevi, also held a speech addressing climate change and how recycling offers solutions to the problems that our planet is facing. Asilevi also expressed his appreciation for the collaboration and partnership with the Market Queens. He emphasised the important role the market queens can play in the recycling process.

Ashaiman Municipal Chief Executive speeching

Check the Instagram Reel

On our Instagram page, we posted a short clip that provides an overview of how our Global Recycling Day at the Ashaiman market went, be sure to check it out! For more information on Safisana’s activities subscribe to our quarterly newsletter!