Empowering Informal Waste Workers

With global plastic production expected to triple in the next forty years, the informal waste sector is critical in defending the world against ocean plastic pollution. As many as 20 million people worldwide work in the informal waste sector and are responsible for over half of all plastic waste collected and recycled globally. However, despite their significant contributions, informal waste collectors (IWCs) are often overlooked and undervalued. IWCs regularly face stigma, unsafe working conditions, and even violence. They lack basic protections, access to financial and technical support, and safeguarding from the global effects of calamities such as COVID-19 and the climate crisis. Women waste collectors face additional obstacles—including discrimination and sexual harassment—to fully participate in the sector.
An efficient, inclusive, and equitable informal waste sector is integral to a circular economy.
To that end, USAID’s Clean Cities, Blue Ocean program is:

• engaging with informal waste collectors to ensure they have the tools and resources to successfully integrate in the circular economy;
• ensuring workers are valued for the services they provide and have a voice in the decisions that impact them;
• connecting all actors in the waste chain to improve workers’ lives and livelihoods; and
• expanding local waste services, particularly for underserved areas, and creating
  markets for recyclable plastics so informal workers can sell their plastics at fair market value.