Government and other relevant institutions will be exploring viable economic opportunities in the waste management sector.

“We need to rise to the challenge and develop innovative ideas on how we can improve waste management systems in the country to drive the recycling economy,” Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa said.

She was speaking during the three-day National Waste Management Summit, which was convened under the theme ‘War on Waste: Driving the recycling economy in South Africa’, held in Mpumalanga since Monday.

The waste recycling economy would positively contribute to the growth and development of South Africa’s economy.

“It is through this economic ingenuity that the Department of Environmental Affairs will also contribute to sustainable development and inclusive green economic growth by facilitating employment creation, infrastructure, skills development and strengthening Small Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) in the waste management sector,” Department of Environmental Affairs spokesperson Albi Modise said.

He said more than 500 government representatives, waste management practitioners, academia and civil society gathered at the summit to devise means to accelerate the notion of the recycling economy by eliminating bottlenecks in the waste management sector.

The summit provided a platform for robust, constructive and technical engagements on waste management priorities for the country.

“The waste management sector has viable economic opportunities that the summit acknowledged still need to be unlocked. It is for this reason that government and other relevant institutions are exploring the notion of recycling economy.

“In 2011, Cabinet approved the National Waste Management Strategy (NWMS), which paves the way for exploration of recycling economy as a mechanism to improve socio-economic conditions in South Africa,” Minister Modise said.