SEO RIDERS:
– Kenyan waste picker associations call for formal role in INC‑5.2 plastics treaty negotiations.
– Frontline recyclers demand rights, decent wages, health protections, and integration into formal waste systems.
– Calls to reject plastic credits and prioritize Extended Producer Responsibility funding for empowerment.
In Nairobi on 31 July 2025, the Kenya National Waste Pickers Welfare Association, led by Chairman Brian Gisore Nyabuti, issued a poignant plea to delegates at the upcoming INC‑5.2 plastics treaty negotiations in Geneva. Highlighting that Kenyan waste pickers collect and recycle up to 60% of plastic waste, Gisore criticized their exclusion from policy discussions and demanded a treaty that champions their dignity, livelihoods, and human rights through a just transition framework.
The Association’s priorities include formalizing waste pickers into national recycling systems, ensuring fair wages, health insurance, and cooperative funding via Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) mechanisms. They also strongly rejected the commodification of labor through plastic credits. Gisore urged treaty negotiators to cap plastic production, eliminate toxic additives, support reuse and recycling infrastructure, and embed pathways for waste pickers to participate in decision-making and side-events.
