In neighborhoods across Guyana, the sight of plastic bottles, bags, and styrofoam used to be as common as mango trees. But today, a quiet revolution is underway—one that is helping citizens turn trash into opportunity, and cleaning up communities along the way.
Guyana’s Solid Waste Management Improvement Program, led by the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, is helping towns and municipalities upgrade their landfill sites and waste separation systems. Five modern sanitary landfills are under construction in Regions 2, 3, 5, 6, and 10, and a National Recycling Strategy is in the works to formalize collection, sorting, and upcycling initiatives (Ministry of Local Government, 2024).
This progress isn’t just about the environment—it’s also creating jobs. In Region 3, for example, the new waste transfer station has created over 50 community jobs, many of them for youth and women. These workers are part of a growing network of waste sorters and recyclers who are reducing landfill pressure and earning income by selling plastics, cardboard, and metal to certified buyers (EPA Guyana Annual Report, 2023).
And the impact is deeply human. Clean streets mean healthier children. Reduced burning of garbage lowers asthma risk. Cleaner canals mean fewer mosquitoes and less dengue. Just imagine how much further we can go if every region had the right systems and leadership in place.
Progress doesn’t always come in dramatic headlines. Sometimes, it comes one plastic bottle at a time.
