Foundation For A Better Environment (FABE), a Non-Governmental Organisation, has partnered Oracle Nigeria to clean up Ketu fruit market in Lagos.
Mrs Temitope Okunnu, founder of FABE, while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), during the cleaning exercise on Saturday in Ketu, said the initiative was aimed at ensuring a clean environment and creating awareness on sustainable waste management.
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She said the intervention was under the foundation’s project tagged, ‘Tidy Nigeria.’
“We are trying to clean up the market space and the community. We do this by creating a lot of awareness around sustainable waste management and composting.
“This awareness is basically on how to recycle their waste and we have chosen the markets because they are the most neglected when it comes to community development,” she said.
Okunnu said there were lots of waste materials being pushed out everyday from the market, particularly from the fruits market.
She added that this was because one-third of their produce was always spoilt.
“This Ketu market is very important to us because during this dispensation we were able to revive the bio-gas plant that is here.
“We feel that it is not being maximised, hence, the need for more awareness to let them know there is a bio digester in the market and they don’t have to pay to throw their waste away anymore,” said Okunnu.
She said the foundation had been working in collaboration with the Lagos State government, LAWMA and Ministry of Environment on the bio-digester.
According to her, traders at Ketu market can now convert their fruit waste into gas, particularly pineapples, watermelons and mangoes, which are very good sources of bio gas.
“These fruits when put into the bio-digester and converted into gas can power the whole market.
“This is to showcase what ketu market has. ketu market alone can provide its energy, this fruit market can actually create the energy they need,” she said.
The Country Director for Oracle Nigeria, an ICT company, Mr Segun Ajayi, said their partnership with FABE foundation was to achieve a healthy and safe environment in commemorating the World Earth Day.
“We are in partnership with the foundation to sensitise the people about clean and good health so we are here at Ketu to clean the environment to make it worth living for the people.
“For us, this is to show part of what we can do to support our community and make it clean,” he said.
BRANDPOWER reports that part of the activities embarked upon to clean up Ketu fruit market included planting of trees, recycling, composting, among others.
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