It is only by fostering partnership and leveraging the strengths of each sector that we can build a cleaner, greener, healthier environment for future generations, stated the President of the Republic of Mauritius, Mr Prithvirajsing Roopun, this morning, as he launched the IslandPlas project at the Paradis Beachcomber Golf Resort & Spa, Le Morne.
Eminent personalities including the President of the Coca-Cola Foundation, Mr Carlos Pagoaga, and the Regional Director, International Union for Conservation of Nature-Eastern & Southern Africa, Mr Luther Bois Anukur, were present on the occasion.
The IslandPlas project targeting seven African Islands, that is, Cabo Verde, Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius, São Tomé and Príncipe, Seychelles, and Zanzibar, is a joint initiative of the Coca-Cola Foundation and the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
In his keynote speech, President Roopun lauded the undertaking of the project and encouraged other such initiatives for the African continent and the world. He raised the alarm as regards the climate crisis, which he recalled is human-induced and necessitates the preservation of our bio diversity.
Highlighting our high dependence on the global food system, the President underpinned the need of protecting natural resources, both inland and in the Ocean.
Furthermore, he dwelt on the vulnerability of Small Island Developing States such as Mauritius to the impacts of climate change, and called for urgent actions that should be taken as a SIDS and as a state within African continent.
Speaking about plastic pollution, he indicated that mankind produces over 400 million metric tons of plastic annually, 11 million tonnes of plastic waste end up in the Ocean, and only 9 % of all the plastic waste generated globally is recycled.
While cautioning against plastic pollution as both a climate change and health hazard, he expressed satisfaction that there is now consensus that we should all act against it.
Mauritius, he said, though does not have capacity to make a meaningful change, is committed to transform the island into a plastic-free paradise, through a series of stringent measures, and further with the ongoing elaboration of a National Roadmap. He further stressed that initiatives such as the IslandPlas can indeed make a difference.
President Roopun, moreover, emphasised that Government alone cannot solve this issue, but instead a collaborative approach is vital for creating sustainable solutions and significantly reduce our plastic footprint.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
'I am here to advocate for the Government, the private sector and the civil society to work together, hand in hand, in same direction, so that we can move towards some solution to this world problem', said the President.
IslandPlas: Advancing Circular Solutions to Plastic Pollution in African Islands
The IslandPlas project aims to advance circular solutions that reduce plastic waste leakage in these seven African islands, and help them transition into plastic waste-free islands.
This project, valued at USD $10 Million, funded by The Coca-Cola Foundation to International Union for Conservation of Nature, will help improve sustainable livelihoods of informal waste sector actors in the plastics economy, reduce plastic waste pollution into the environment and through plastic waste collection and catalyse capital investments to sector innovation and enterprise development with new growth opportunities.
