Rendering Waste Management Services by Community Co-operatives

In December 2005 it helped facilitate the growth of Community Co-operatives to render waste management services.  Targeting the poor and women, the municipality, through the Economic Development, Tourism and Agriculture Business Unit (EDTA), established several co-operatives to bid for government waste management contracts. The groups are then trained and provided continual support for both quality assurance and skills training.  Co-operatives are trained in waste management systems, public relations, environment education, disciplinary procedures, and administration.  Using funds that would normally go to private contractors, the government allowed competitive bidding for the service contracts and awarded 6 co-operatives to cover areas that include 19,645 households ranging from low-income informal settlements to high-income formal settlements. Teams range is size depending on the area, but working in the co-operatives are 6 teams comprising 183 members. On average contracts are awarded at roughly R20 per household per month for informal settlements and R25 per household per month in the formal settlements.  Contracts are supervised by the Environmental Services Business Unit. Groups work is monitored and penalized if work is poor but penalties are explained on an easy to understand photometric scale.

Innovation

While the ASD’s and Community Co-operatives have been used before, the NMBM innovation is providing the Co-operatives with training and consistent support so that they don’t fail. Continued support should allow them to profit from their enterprises and ensure quality control.

Effectiveness

The NMBM is content with the contracts. It claims the area is cleaner and it is being accomplished with the same budget that private contractors had used but reaching more people with more money. If contract money is awarded equally and administration costs are low, employees of the co-operatives could be taking home R1500-2500 a month. Meanwhile, there is more of a sense of community responsibility for waste management. The penalty system should ensure quality control as well.

Poverty Impact

With 183 members employed in the co-operatives, which are jointly owned and democratically managed in voluntary associations, these former unemployed are now taking in decent incomes and are thus able to better support their families.

Sustainability

The Co-operatives compete for their contracts, which are funded by the regular budget allocations for waste management and thus unlikely to change. Training and support is continuous and their contracts are monitored by ESBU.

Replication

This project should provide a model for easy replication as it does not require extra-budgetary funds and provides a reliable service. It only necessitates government will to initiate it.

Partnerships

• Economic Development
• Tourism and Agriculture Authority
• Environmental Services Business Unit