The Deputy Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Hon. Mima Yema Mimi Sobba- Stephens, has officially launched the “Go Circular Week 2025” at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Aberdeen, Freetown on the 20th February, 2025.
The launch was done under the theme “our beach, our environment, our responsibility” with support from World Bank and PROBLUE.
The launch of the “Go Circular Week” brought together entities across government circles, local authorities, private sector, amongst others, to discuss challenges, opportunities and strategies for sustaining and transforming plastic wastes into circular economy.
The week-long event, which commenced on the 20th and slated to end on the 27th February 2025, will feature key among other engagements, with recyclers, waste management collectors who are anchored on circularity, the launch of national recycle association, engagement with hotel and beach bar owners, round table discussions with coastline communities on sand mining, engagement of policy makers to discuss the bottlenecks on plastic waste management and addressing them, awarding deserving personalities for achieving on circularity.
Launching the “Go Circular Week 2025”, Hon. Sobba-Stephens considered Plastic waste as a global problem, noting that unlike other natural materials, it does not decompose for more than a decade. Consequently, she stated that plastics clog drainage systems, exacerbate flooding, pollute pristine beaches and release toxic substance into the rich biodiversity.
She emphasized the address of such acute problems in both aquatic and terrestrial areas in the country.
She called on all actors to take punitive actions to address the overwhelming menace of plastic wastes to preserve the environment for future generation.
The Deputy Minister acknowledged tourism as a source of income and subsequently spoke favourably of corporate partnership to address plastic menace in potential areas like the beach zones that attract tourism.
She unequivocally stated that concerted effort among key stakeholders is required to eliminate plastic pollution in order to achieve the government’s flagship project- Feed Salone, which is to improve local food production.
