Despite having a national strategy in place, Fiji’s waste management efforts face major implementation hurdles, largely due to limited resources, patchy partnerships, and the gap between data and action.
And implementing waste management policies remains a significant challenge for the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change.
Its permanent secretary Dr Sivendra Michael said the National Integrated Waste Management Strategy needed actionable steps supported by solid data and collaborative partnerships.
“The National Integrated Waste Management Strategy is a policy that grounds us on the strategies we wish to implement going forward,” he said.
Dr Michael explained the ministry had access to reliable data collected through municipal councils, particularly regarding the volume of waste entering the nation’s landfill.
“The current landfill services 13 municipal councils or 13 station areas, covering areas from just below Korovou through to Lami, and even some villages and communities beyond that.
“We are actually weighing how much rubbish goes in.”
He noted that this data would be used to inform the development of container deposit regulations and proposed amendments to the Litter Act.
However, Dr Michael raised concerns about the real-world applicability of the strategy, pointing out that having a policy alone was not sufficient.
“Yes, the data informs the policy. But is the policy implementable? That’s a very key question.
“For it to be implementable, not only do we need resources, we also need partnerships.”
He stressed the importance of cross-sector collaboration to ensure effective waste management solutions were delivered on the ground.
“A very big component of this is to ensure that these partnerships help us identify key areas where data is informing policy directions, and more importantly, how we can act – not just leave it on paper.”
Dr Michael said the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change continued to explore opportunities for partnership and community engagement as it works to strengthen the implementation of national waste management initiatives.
