Waste Pickers Training Program: Building the Capacity of the Most Vulnerable

The USAID-funded Recycling in Jordan is a five-year Activity awarded in August 2020. The Activity collaborates with waste generators in Amman's commercial sector, private sector recycling service providers, the Ministry of Environment (MoENV), the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM), and relevant business associations. Its goal is to increase the demand for and utilization of recycling services in the commercial sector.

The Activity adopts a market-based approach to enhance and expand private sector-led solid waste management services, boost the demand for recycling services among the commercial sector, improve the performance and profitability of private sector service providers, and garner increased government support for private sector involvement in waste management. As the recycling sector becomes more competitive, the Activity seeks to leverage opportunities to stimulate the commercial sector's demand for recycling services.

Through a market system analysis conducted by the Activity, it was determined that informal waste-picking activities are predominantly male-driven and operate within network structures, controlling a significant portion of sought-after waste materials. These networks create barriers for women to enter or advance within the informal segments of the recycling value chain. In the absence of social and legal interventions, women either remain absent from the informal networks or face obstacles in accessing the recycling value chain, particularly in terms of obtaining recyclables of desirable quality and quantity compared to men.

Consequently, the Activity has developed a waste picker training and certification program to address the challenges of accessing recyclables and provide support to the most vulnerable participants in the market.