The Minister of Environmental Affairs, Edna Molewa will today, 23 June, launch the Working on Waste (WoW) programme in Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape.

The WoW programme seeks to address the problem of increased volumes of waste and the backlog in the provision of waste services especially in urban-informal areas, tribal areas and rural formal areas. The objective is to provide support in the development of waste management capacity as well as infrastructure and equipment in underserviced areas. WoW forms part of the Department of Environmental Affairs Expanded Public Works Programme. Labour intensive methods are used thus contributing to job creation, skills development and small business development opportunities.

WoW priorities

The support provided through the WoW Programme includes but is not limited to installing and constructing of waste bins, sorting facilities, composting facilities, transfer stations, buyback centres, material recovery facilities, and landfill sites. In addition, the programme also assists with capacity building for local government in terms of street cleaning, waste collection, landfill administration and operation, and waste recycling. This is achieved through recruiting, capacitating and placing the youth, women and people with disabilities in municipalities.

WoW update

In the 2014/15 – 2015/16 financial years, the WoW programme committed funding to 130 projects nationally to the value of R 1.2 billion and to date has successfully implemented a total of 85 projects.