Well of Science, a sustainability-tech company, has launched the “Naija Zero Plastic Challenge” competition to engage youths in raising awareness on protecting the environment and ensuring sustainable development.
With the theme “Driving Adoption of Alternatives to Plastic,’’ the challenge seeks to adopt innovative and eco-friendly alternatives towards achieving a zero plastics lifestyle.
In doing so, it also hopes to address the menace of plastic waste pollution and help to set Nigeria on the path towards achieving a zero plastic waste society.
Nigeria is said to generate an average of 32 million tons of waste annually, of which 2.5 million tons are plastics which experts allude to population growth as the main contributor to the waste management crisis in the country.
With Nigeria’s population currently at over 200 million people, and the figure expected to double by 2050, there is a need for urgent attention and the promotion and adoption of the circular economy by all stakeholders.
Etia Nwaenang, the chief executive officer of Well of Science, who made this known in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, during the unveiling of the challenge said it was open to young content creators “to drive behavioral change and adopt healthy plastics alternatives by presenting their content ideas through visual/ digital art, spoken words, short videos, music, and photography.”
“We want to achieve a better and sustainable environment. Globally, a lot of countries are on it. The Nigerian government cannot do this alone. That is why we are here today. He also stated that to achieve a zero plastics society in Nigeria requires multi-stakeholders parti
“For decades, the use of plastics for consumer goods packaging has been with us, and the method of disposal has left the earth in a huge mess and a menace to manage.
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“These inspired the Naija Zero Plastic Challenge put together to build the needed narrative to transit from plastics to eco-friendly alternatives and help propagate responsible consumption and production, in line with achieving the Sustainable Development Goal 11, 12.
According to the CEO, “the financial prize for each of the category winners is fixed at $200, and the grand prize winner will go home with an Apple MacBook Pro, and an ambassador portfolio to perform an outreach program within the period,” he said.
Also speaking at the event, the chief operations officer of Well of Science, Ubong Inyang used the opportunity to introduce ShoppersBag, an eco-friendly and reusable shopping bag that users would earn points at every usage in partnering stores and malls in the event.
“We want to change the culture of dependency on plastic bags which have constituted a nuisance to our environment. This ShoppersBag is cost-effective and user-friendly and made 100 percent from recyclable material. That is the culture we are promoting, the shopping bag he said integrates with a mobile app that tracks usage, rewards, and measures the reduction rate in single-use plastics in stores.”
The commissioner for environment and solid minerals, Akwa Ibom State, Charles Udoh who was represented by a Director in the ministry, Bella Emason commended the company for the foresight and the initiative and promised the support of the State government towards the realisation of this laudable initiative.
Messages of goodwill came from the National Bamboo Farmers, Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria through their chairman, Ukeme Nyah, and Tijah Bolton-Akpan, the executive director of Policy Alert, a non-governmental organisation among others.
Well of Science calls on brands and government agencies to join hands in creating awareness and supporting initiatives that drive the adoption of eco-friendly alternatives to plastic and reduce the degradation of the environment for a cleaner Nigeria.
The submission of entries will start from the 21st of August to the 30th of September, 2022. The category winners will be announced by the jury team, while the grand prize winner will be based on community votes. The creator with the highest online impression and engagement will be awarded; the community votes winner on the 19th of October, 2022. The winners of the Naija Zero Plastic Challenge will be awarded in an event on the 21st of October, 2022.
