Empowering Africa's tomorrow, together

Projects like the Waste Bank that address the social needs of communities contribute to meeting Absa’s ESG targets. A critical component of the Waste Bank project is integrating waste pickers to ensure they benefit. During the COVID pandemic, while SA was in various stages of lockdowns, waste pickers were unable to work, did not have access to financial services, had no way to save, and had no access to credit lines. There are an estimated 60,000-90,000 waste collectors, with the project having the ability to generate more than 17,000 tons of recyclables, saving 41,000 cubic meters of landfill space per month. For waste collectors, there is an opportunity to reduce the long distances of traveling needed to sell waste – often at non-competitive prices – while also reducing the risk of carrying cash and having their livelihoods threatened. The digitization of transactions in the recycling value chain, together with an increased number of drop-off points, allows for pricing transparency and competitive pricing and allows access to credit and financial inclusion. 29