On Monday 14 October the Deputy Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs, Rejoice Mabudafhasi, officially opened the 4th Waste Management Khoro at the Olive Convention Centre in Durban. The Waste Management Khoro took place from 14 to 16 October 2013.

The Waste Khoro is a platform for all Waste Management Officers, waste management practitioners and other related officials from the three spheres of government to share experiences and discuss challenges, possible solutions and opportunities with a goal of improving waste management in the country. Waste management has since 2009, made a remarkable yet gradual policy shift with the introduction of the National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 (Act No. 59 of 2008) (NEMWA). The NEMWA serves as one of the catalysts aimed at fast tracking the implementation of integrated waste management systems.

The NEMWA is being implemented through the National Waste Management Strategy (NWMS) which was approved by cabinet in 2011. According to the Deaprtment of Environmental Affairs – and numerous discussions at the Khoro – waste management in South Africa faces numerous challenges including the growing volumes of waste generated due to economic growth, population growth and the complexity of waste streams generated. “Lack of sufficient recycling infrastructure, reclamation systems and insufficient funding mechanisms further add to the complexity of this composite challenge. Central to these challenges; is a need for continued coordination and sharing of resources amongst the three spheres of government as well as industry and civil society in order to make momentous changes in the waste management sector,” said a statement released by the Department on the launch of the event.

Speaking during the official opening, the Deputy Minister said that “the Waste Management Khoro has now become a milestone event to take stock of what we as a country are achieving and what we still need to focus on in order to improve the delivery of waste services to our people”.

“As the population gradually grows and society progress, the generation of waste becomes an unavoidable phenomenon. It is further complicated by the complex waste streams which are fuelled by technology advancements and consumerism lifestyles”, said Mabudafhasi.

The Khoro’s theme for this year was “Making the Management of Waste a collective effort.” The discussions at the Khoro were centralised around the implementation of the National Development Plan, the Outcome 10 service delivery agreements, and the National Waste Management Strategy which prioritises the development of clean and sustainable environments for all and most importantly, the participation of all citizens in development matters.

Mabudafhasi also said, “Waste management is central to the improvement of the standard of living and has a potential to eradicate poverty through job creation opportunities which exist in waste collection, recycling and other forms of waste management in general”.

“Following our assessment of unlicensed waste disposal sites in the country, the Department supported the licensing of 56 sites in the 2012/13 financial year. Further to that; out of the remaining 202 unlicensed sites, the Department will support a total of 122 sites and a further 80 sites will be funded by the Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency (MISA). We are looking at eradicating the backlog of unlicensed sites by end of March 2014,” said Mabudafhasi.

During the official opening ceremony, Deputy Minister Mabudafhasi was joined by the Deputy Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Andries Nel, KwaZulu Natal MEC for Agriculture and Environmental Affairs, Dr Meshack Radebe, Executive Mayor of Ethekwini Metropolitan Municipality, Cllr James Nxumalo and Mayor of Thulamela Local Municipality, Cllr Grace Mahosi.