Producers Mandated to Design products for recycling

The director-general of the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), Prof. Innocent Barikor, has emphasised that Nigeria’s Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) programme mandates producers to design products and packaging that are recyclable or reusable, in line with circular economy principles.

According to a statement by the NESREA Assistant Director of Press, Nwamaka Ejiofor, Barikor made the remarks while fielding questions on NESREA Half Hour, an environmental programme produced in collaboration with the Federal Road Safety Corps and aired on National Traffic Radio 107.1 FM, Abuja.

Barikor, who was represented by the Assistant Director, Plastics at NESREA, Chukwudi Nwabuisiaku described the Circular Economy as an economic system where products and packaging are designed to last, and their packaging at the post-consumer stage or end-of-life is managed in a manner that such products can be recycled, reused, upgraded, repurposed, or upcycled.

He said, “If you are producing anything, think of the end-of-life of that product, its take-back, and what else it can be used for. Therefore, the responsibility of the producer is extended to the post-consumer stage or end-of-life.”

Barikor also stated that all producers are mandated to register with the relevant Producer Responsibility Organisation of their product’s sector, adding that there are existing PROs in the country for the Food & Beverage, Battery, Electrical and Electronics, and Tyre Sectors, where the programme has already kicked off.

He said the Agency was also partnering with a Fintech company to strengthen the implementation framework for the formalisation of the downstream operators of the value chain and ensure that waste pickers and collectors are properly trained and incentivised by the Producer Responsibility Organisations.

Source: The Punch