Winning the war against waste in Kupang City

Ms Sri Yanti is the bookkeeper at the Nefonaek Waste Bank in Kupang City, Indonesia. She believed that if she showed her community that she can sort her waste despite living with a disability, others would follow her example (Yayasan Plan International Indonesia / Weynand W. Pello)

Nusa Tengarra Timur's capital city of Kupang is home to more than 466,000 people. Each year, it produces around 85,000 tonnes of waste, with almost 20% being plastic. A staggering 75% of this waste is unsafely managed and disposed of through processes like burning and burial, as well as illegal dumping. These practices impact on the already low quality of surface water, contaminating sources like rivers and reservoirs, and the groundwater, which affects communities beyond the city limits. 

Despite the large volume of waste, until recently, Mutiara Timor Waste Bank was the only central unit actively collecting, sorting, and processing waste in Kupang, and in 2021, this was limited to 52 tonnes per annum. But regardless of how much waste Mutiara Timor and other units were able to process, the real challenge lay in convincing people to stop openly burning plastic waste, start sorting it, and take it to a waste bank where it could be processed for recycling, reuse, and safe disposal.

With support from Australia through Water for Women, Yaysan Plan International Indonesia (Plan Indonesia), Plan International Australia and local partners collaborated to establish a waste bank in four pilot villages - In the four villages Oebufu, Naioni, Nefonaek, and Maulafa - as part of their Climate-Resilient Inclusive WASH in Indonesia (CERIA) project. Many were pessimistic because previous efforts to address solid waste issues in Kupang had been in vain, and each of these villages, fewer than 10 households were actively taking their waste to a processing unit.

In each unit, officers work tirelessly to promote waste sorting. Young people, women, and individuals with disabilities are among the unit organisers. Churches are also taking waste sorting seriously and teaching children in their congregations to collect and sort their waste. 

One such champion is Ms Sri Yanti, who is the bookkeeper at the waste bank in Nefonaek village. Ms Sri Yanti believed that if she showed her community that she can sort and deliver her waste, despite living with a disability that requires her to use a mobility aid, others would follow her example and begin to collect and sort their waste too. And this is proving; Nefonaek Waste Bank has seen a tripling in the number of households collecting and sorting their waste for safe processing since it opened.

Hana Nutan, who leads the operations at the Nefonaek waste bank, says there is strong commitment to developing strategies to ensure it remains viable and sustainable for the long-term: “We have every intention and commitment to continue this activity even though the project is ending. That is why we think that we need to start making small contributions to the waste bank,” said Hana Natun.

Having four additional waste banks in Kupang City has removed a major obstacle by reducing the travel distance for thousands who would previously have had to take their waste to the central Mutiara Timor facility. Along with the new waste bank operations and significantly increased capacity at Mutiara Timor, an education program has been raiisng awareness and supporting communities to learn about waste sorting and the benefits to them. 

With support through the CERIA project, the Mutiara Timor facility has been able to process a staggering six times more waste, and combined, the four new waste banks have collectively reduced waste accumulation at the Kupang City landfill by 5,315.5 kg. Plastic that once littered the streets, polluting waterways and the wider environment of Kupang, is now recycled into useful objects by local businesses. 

With news of these successful outcomes, Plan Indonesia and Mutiara Timor Waste Bank have recently been approached to design a waste sorting intervention for Pertamina, Indonesia’s oil company. Two other villages in Kupang City have also asked Plan Indonesia to support them with training to create their own waste banks. 

Water for Women partners with Plan Indonesia, Plan International Australia and local partners to deliver the CERIA project in Nusa Tenggara Timur and Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB) provinces. With targeted support to every level of government responsible for climate-resilient community-based total sanitation (STBM) in Indonesia - from the national level to the village level, and strengthening linkages between these levels - the CERIA project aims to improve the climate resilience, health, gender equality and well-being of 223,088^* people living in Kupang City, Manggarai and Sumbawa Districts. 

*These Fund targets are based on partner civil society organisations project baseline studies. Project targets are updated periodically in response to changes in context as appropriate.