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Monrovia City Mayor Jefferson T. Koijee said he appreciated the head of the European Union delegation to Liberia for recognizing the enormity of the challenge the city government faces in managing solid waste in the city of Monrovia.
Mayor Koijee said that Ambassador Laurent Delahousse’s comment that Monrovia is one of the dirtiest cities he has visited is essentially a reaffirmation of the Monrovia City Corporation’s position that “waste management solid in the city of Monrovia exceeds our ability to meet the existing challenges we have in the absence of a sustainable approach.
The statement by the mayor of the city of Monro comes immediately after the EU chief of mission said at the start of a two-day solid waste management forum in Monrovia that Monrovia “is disgusting and the city the dirtier of the many places I have visited in my work in Africa.
“I am aware that huge progress has been made, but there is still a long way to go because a clean city is essential to attract tourists and create jobs for young people, which is a big problem in Liberia.
“In waste management, community leaders are an essential factor. You represent the people and an essential transmission line between the objectives of your government and implementation by the people. And also, an essential transmission line between the needs of the population and your government.
You all have an absolutely essential role to play in this regard.
I don’t know this problem very well [waste management in Monrovia] because I’ve only been here a year. I want to get informed and find out more, ”said the EU envoy.
Koijee stressed that it is undeniable that “the management of solid waste in our city remains a fundamental challenge in front of our vision of a clean, green and safe environment. The methods used previously to keep the city of Monrovia clean did not belong to us. not to the citizens. Therefore, sustainability, despite the help of our international partners, has eluded us. The challenge therefore remains insurmountable. We have not come to management to apologize for these inconveniences or to dismiss the blame, but these are problems that we are overcoming. ”
“I am happy that the European Union delegation in Liberia, through its leader, realizes the enormity of our challenge. Despite everything, we are committed to changing the story, ”said the mayor of the city of Monrovia.
He said recognition of this challenge goes a long way to informing the European Union and other partners of the need for continued assistance as the municipal government strives to establish a sustainable framework.
Mayor Koijee believes that every penny spent on waste management would have no impact unless a sustainable strategy that exploits the full involvement and ownership of ordinary citizens in terms of waste management is put in place. We are not here to make excuses. We have come to solve a problem. Getting there would require all hands on deck, ”said Mayor Jefferson Koijee.
According to him, the municipal government is taking a bottom-up approach that would allow community leaders to work with households to put in place a regulated waste disposal mechanism that is sustainable, mainly because people would take ownership while the municipal government would provide leadership.
Monrovia’s municipal government is also seeking to address the threat by converting them into value-added products such as briquettes for household and industrial fuels.
This is why, added Mayor Koijee, the forum was organized to bring together all stakeholders to discuss ways and communicate to them the sustainable approach that the municipal government is putting in place to meet the many challenges.
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