City Council collects over 600 tonnes of waste daily, with most coming from Thongpiny – Mayor

The Mayor of Juba City, Christopher Serafino Wani, says the city council collects more than 600 tonnes of waste across the capital every day, with Thonpiny among the biggest waste-producing areas.

Wani made the revelation in an exclusive interview with Eye Radio on Thursday.

He attributed the high volume of waste in Thonpiny to overcrowding and high population density.

“Juba has grown significantly in population, and waste is generated every day. Do you know that we collect more than 600 tons of waste from across the city every day? I repeat, we collect more than 600 tons of waste daily. This is based on our actual records,” Wani said.

He described Thonpiny as a major hotspot in the city’s waste management programme, saying overcrowding has made sanitation efforts more challenging.

“Thonpiny is considered a major hotspot in our waste management programme because of the high volume of waste generated there. It is one of the most challenging areas because many people live in a very small space. A place meant to accommodate no more than 10 people can have up to 100 people living in makeshift homes,” he said.

The mayor said the council is conducting door-to-door campaigns to educate residents on proper waste disposal and improve sanitation.

“The only way forward is to create awareness and engage residents. Our teams have visited the area several times and conducted door-to-door campaigns to educate people on proper waste management,” he added.

The remarks come months after Wani revealed in February that the city council was spending an average of 35 million South Sudan Pounds daily on waste management.

He said the expenditure covers fuel, maintenance and the operation of 37 waste collection vehicles, including compactors and tippers.