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Midlands Bureau Chief
TO others, an attainment of a degree and better still a postgraduate degree, signals a white collar job, with a big mahogany desk, an air-conditioned office and a secretary to take one’s calls.

Such qualifications have seen many graduates failing to think outside the box and venture into other areas such as farming which might seem demeaning to others.

It is precisely because of this mentality that we have many unemployed graduates who think that someone has to create employment for them.

The story is, however, different for Mr Tasisious Muza (39) — a Midlands State University (MSU) graduate — who holds a degree in Human Resources Management and a postgraduate degree in Safety Health and Environmental Management.

He is earning a living from visiting dumpsites and picking up litter along the highways and streets.

Mr Muza, a father of one, is the director of a Gweru-based company called Greenworks which is playing a crucial role in environment management by creating jobs for locals through recycling waste which they export to South Africa.

He said after graduating and working for a leading beverages company in the country, he discovered that they were not putting to good use the used containers.

“I graduated with a degree in Human Resources Management from Midlands State University before my post graduate degree in Safety Health and Environment Management. I worked for Delta Beverages. While there, I found out that there were no takers in waste management. There were no companies in Gweru that were taking or recycling waste from this company. So, I saw an opportunity and decided to leave the company,” he said.

Mr Muza said he engaged some friends in South Africa and registered Greenworks in June 2018 before embarking on serious operations in 2019.

In an interview to commemorate the belated Africa Environment Day on Wednesday at his workshop in the Heavy Industrial site in Gweru, Mr Muza said he recycles used plastic bottles, cardboard papers and glass bottles for export to South Africa.

“Like in our case, we export and there is a need for us to have relevant paperwork and market as well.”

“We noticed that our environment is polluted and there are no players in the industry who are prepared to work with waste and the few who are there are not doing enough so this is the main reason why we ventured into this business which is not being taken seriously by most players.”

Mr Muza noted that there were challenges in terms of operating space and people’s attitude towards waste disposal.

“There are various challenges. Our operating space is very small and the quantities that we gather from the Midlands Province are so much that we need more space.

“Because of the costs associated with this business, we end up having a smaller place but with resources permitting, we would rather have a bigger space that will accommodate all the recyclable waste that we deal with.

“We have challenges dealing with people, especially their attitude towards waste disposal is very negative and we need to change that mindset and teach them how to dispose of their waste,” he said.

Mr Muza said his company does not have enough equipment to deal with the waste that is being generated.

“We have six full time employees who work at the workshop and indirectly we have 50 people who work with the waste pickers that are around. We have challenges in terms of machinery. We need a more efficient and reliable baler machine, granulating and plastic pelletising machine, rubber to tile making machinery, a forklift pet granulating machine, plastic pelletiser. We also need a bigger space to operate from. We have two trucks but they are a bit small and we need bigger trucks,” he said.

Mr Muza said he exports cardboard boxes to South Africa while single use plastics are sold locally to some consumers who do recycling.

He however, said the company does could not export to countries like England because they need semi-processed stuff.

“We have customers in England who want our stuff but we cannot export it to them because they want semi-processed stuff. What is hindering us is that we do not have enough equipment to do the part processing,” he said.

Mr Muza said he does not regret starting his company with the assistance of his wife who is responsible for managing finances and general administrative issues.

Environmental Management Agency (Ema) Midlands province Education and Publicity Officer Mr Oswad Ndlovu said consumption and production patterns across the world are getting unsustainable with each passing year as human demands far outweigh the ability of the earth to regenerate.

“Most of these problems have been caused by the linear economy which is based on extraction, consumption and disposal. However, this has resulted in accumulation of waste streams, hazardous waste, unsustainable energy consumption, electronic waste, deforestation and high chemical usage. A paradigm shift is imminent through the Circular Economy (CE). A circular economy is one which is anchored on resource recovery, recycling and reusing materials in order to limit the residuals and waste materials which enter the environment.

Circularity offers potential for environmental protection, creation of green jobs and poverty alleviation,” he said.

Zimbabwe has already started the journey towards attaining circularity.

The CE models are gaining ground in different parts of the world due to the ability of the approach to solve the environmental challenges affecting society.

Emerging approaches are being developed in dealing with medical waste across the continent. The Ministry of Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry through Ema, Mr Ndlovu said, is also taking an active role in providing guidance on the management of Covid-19 waste streams.

“A circular economy has potential in many respects including “waste to energy”, recycling of aluminium cans which can be done forever and condensate recovery in industrial processes. There is a proven business case in implementing a circular economy. Business leaders should consider this model as a means to attain profitability. Industrial Symbiosis is also emerging as a viable way to deal with waste.

Industrial Symbiosis occurs when one waste from another organisation becomes a raw material to another organisation. Private sector companies have significant potential in implementing industrial symbiosis. Key examples include the process of waste from fertiliser manufacturing companies being used in plaster manufacturing. Waste from timber processing can also be used for energy generation,” he said.

Africa Environment Day is commemorated on March 3 each year and was proclaimed by the then Organisation of African Unity in 2002 to raise awareness on the pressing environmental challenges then facing the continent.