Picture> Mrs. Nabeela Farida Tunis
Sierra Leone’s Minister of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, Mrs. Nabeela Farida Tunis has on behalf of the Chief Minister, David Sengeh launched the Go Circular week at a well-attended ceremony held at Sports Zone, Lumley Beach, Freetown.
The initiative was conceived by the collective need of the Ministries of Finance, Tourism and Environment through Sierra Leone Economic Diversification Project (SLEDP) PROBLUE project to address the issue of plastic waste. The aim was to raise awareness on the importance of reducing plastic pollution and the need to embrace circular practices that encourage the use of environmentally friendly products.Amongst the activities to mark the week included the Launching of a green label for hotels and a pitch night on plastics circularity at Limkokwing University.
Launching the Go Circular Week, Minister Tunis commended the level of collaboration exhibited by the donors, saying that it was a demonstration of their commitment towards addressing the issue affecting tourism as well as other ministries. She mentioned that Sierra Leone is a beautiful gem to behold, but if the beaches, streets, rivers and towns are littered with plastics, they would lose its beauty, hence she called for commitment to zero waste by transforming what looks unsightly to something pleasant.
She maintained that the Go Circular Week is about changing mindset and working towards a cleaner and healthier environment. She thanked World Bank PROBLUE trust fund of SLEDP and the Resilient Urban Sierra Leone project for taking the challenge to address the crisis. In conclusion, she stressed on the need to reduce plastic waste and no to single use plastic, that plastic is not waste but has material value, and clean green Sierra Leone will attract tourists and benefit everyone. She invited line MDAs to take up the challenge and deliver on sanitary practices that seek to bolster existing practices. All in attendance recited a pledge to stop wasting plastic and start recycling.
Statement were made by the Deputy Minister of Environment, Mima Yema Sobba-Stephens who talked on plastic pollution in Sierra Leone and interventions to address it, the World Bank Country Manager, Abdu Muwonge focused his statement on the Bank’s interventions to support circularity. SLEDP Project Coordinator, Mary Jalloh, Premier Enviro Solutions Ltd, Walid Bahsoon made valuable contributions to the discourse.
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