Pakistan is using co-operative-based models to improve the livelihoods, legal recognition, and working conditions of informal waste pickers, reports Devidiscourse.
The aim is to recognise the important work pickers do in the recycling and recovery of waste materials and support their transition from precarious and dangerous jobs into safer and more sustainable employment. Pakistan produces more than 50 million tonnes of solid waste every year, with waste volumes growing by more than 2.4% annually.
The use of co-operatives to help formalise the country’s vast informal waste sector was agreed at a major training workshop in Lahore in May attended by government representatives, labour organisations, technical experts, and international partners. Delegates discussed how to formalise the country’s vast informal waste sector, strengthen workers’ bargaining power, and improve access to social protection and essential services.
Despite providing essential environmental services, many informal waste workers experience social stigma and exclusion. Low and unstable incomes, unsafe working environments, and health hazards typify employment in the sector with workers lacking legal recognition, social protection and access to healthcare and public services.
Funded by the Japanese government, the initiative is being supported by the International Labour Organization (ILO).
Related: Co-ops help Brazilian waste pickers build climate resilience, study shows
Heejin Ahn, project technical officer at the ILO, said: “Co-operative models can help transform informal waste pickers into recognised waste service providers … their services include recycling and recovering materials which promote environmental sustainability and help improve livelihoods.”
Ahn emphasised that successful implementation of a co-operative model will require collaboration with municipal authorities, private sector companies and waste management agencies. The goal is to develop inclusive waste management systems where waste pickers are recognized as legitimate partners rather than operating outside the formal economy.
The ILO is developing the co-operative model in partnership with the Labour Research and Development Institute, Pakistan United Workers Federation and the Akhter Hameed Khan Foundation.
The initiative comes as Pakistan faces mounting waste management challenges driven by rapid urbanisation, population growth, and rising levels of solid waste generation.
