Who’s Left Out? Concerns Around Inclusive Waste Policy in Makhanda

Inclusive waste management is a growing priority for cities aiming to create sustainable, equitable systems—but many waste pickers remain excluded from formal waste processes. Despite their vital role in recycling and reducing landfill waste, informal workers often face barriers to recognition, fair wages, and safe working conditions. This article explores the key challenges to building truly inclusive waste management systems and bridging policy gaps.

Over the years, Phillip Mzamani Nyalungu and his team has conducted numerous interviews with waste pickers and engaged closely with buy-back centres. The team has made multiple visits to the landfill site to conduct studies, organise activities, and facilitate discussions around media representation with the waste picker community. Collaborations have been established with two representatives from WIEGO, alongside ongoing engagement with both former and current site managers.

That being said, since 2017, waste pickers have seen conditions on the landfill ebb and flow. The private firms change over the years. Municipal officials shuffle. The heaps of waste get scuttled around. The waste pickers remain.

Any decision-making about public services must be participatory and inclusive of the communities whose lives are directly impacted by the services or systems implemented or the sites occupied. The landfill is no exception.

Members of Waste Pickers Makhanda attending a workshop on Environmental Justice at the School of Journalism and Media Studies at Rhodes University in 2018.

Participation involves recognising the communities living on the landfill, as well as

recognition of the informal economy existing in the waste management system. The extreme poverty forces people to become waste pickers and the significant contribution to our society and deserves proper recognition. This is well addressed in the integration for waste pickers in South Africa report.

Our call is not for donations or ad-hoc feeding schemes but for systemic inclusion. The report explicitly stresses that waste pickers must be included in whatever decision making to do with waste management.

The government has good theoretical policies in place - but unfortunately, they never get implemented until community action is taken.

Waste Pickers Makhanda member, Philasande at his home garden.