Rwanda is looking for investors to engage in innovations of bringing alternative environmentally friendly packaging, according to the Deputy Director General of Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA), Faustin Munyazikwiye.
He was speaking in a panel discussion on ‘Packaging and Logistics in Agribusiness’ on the sidelines of the EU-Rwanda Business Forum, on June 27.
The forum themed 'Rwanda - Your Gateway to Africa,' brought together over 600 participants from Rwanda and Europe, including industry leaders from the private sector, diplomats, among other officials.
Munyazikwiye highlighted that innovation, research, and raw materials are fundamentals to reaching sustainable packaging solutions and ending plastic pollution in the country.
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"We are eager to see other investors coming into the recycling of glass bottles since we are seeing a shift of operators moving from plastic to glass bottles. However, we don’t want the glass bottles to become a burden for the community,” he said.
Therefore, he added, the need for innovation from both sides of the public and private sectors on how to work together to achieve that.
So far, only two beverage manufacturers-Inyange Industries and Skol have launched trials for packaging water in glass bottles.
On the other hand, since Rwanda allows home compostable plastics, Munyazikwiye called on investors to invest in this alternative as businesses progressively transition to using sustainable packaging solutions due to the cost plastics have on the environment.
The call comes at a time when business players claim that there needs to be an alternative of packaging where, for instance, it is not feasible to package flour in a paper bag that is supposed to be exported while the paper bag may undergo substance change given the nature of environment it is carried in.
Rwanda is among the first countries to embark on a sustainable packaging journey, after instating the law to ban the manufacturing and importation of single-use plastics in 2019.
With this, Munyazikwiye mentioned that REMA and the private sector signed an agreement to have a scheme whereby private operators who need to use plastic bottles to pay a certain amount for the collection and recycling of those plastics. As of now, businesses that use plastic bottles pay Rwf90 per kilogramme of collected bottles.
This is in line with the environmental levy scheme that is yet to go into force.
So far, there are at least seven companies invested into plastic recycling activities of bottles and polythene bags.
Thibault Relecom, Chief Executive of UNIBA and shareholder, Skol Brewery Ltd Rwanda, explained how they were able to use plastic bottles and the environmental impact it has had over the years.
He encouraged other businesses to embrace the transition and take on innovative solutions towards sustainable development.