Empowering Communities in Plastics Recovery and Recycling (ECPRR)

Project Title: Empowering Communities in Plastics Recovery and Recycling (ECPRR)

Mother Project: The Coca-Cola Foundation funded Plastics Circularity Project (PCP)

Supported by: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Bangladesh

Local Implementing Agency: Young Power in Social Action (YPSA)

Project Duration: Start Date: 9 November 2025 End Date: 30 September 2027

Total Duration: 23 months

Geographic Coverage: Chattogram City Corporation, Cox’s Bazar Municipality and Tangail Municipality

Background and Rationale

Bangladesh faces a rapidly growing plastic pollution challenge due to urbanization, rising consumption, and inadequate waste management systems. Cities like Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, and Tangail struggle with unmanaged plastic waste, which clogs drains, pollutes rivers, and contributes to coastal and marine pollution. The inefficiency of current waste management systems, coupled with the informal sector’s limited capacity, exacerbates the situation. While Bangladesh generates a significant amount of plastic waste, approximately 30 percent of it is recycled, and the rest ends up in open dumpsites, landfills or water bodies, causing environmental degradation.

The ECPRR project aims to address this issue by enhancing plastic recovery, segregation, and recycling systems. Under The Coca-Cola Foundation funded Plastics Circularity Project (PCP), UNDP has partnered with YPSA to locally implement community-driven solutions to reduce plastic leakage into the environment. This ECPRR will contribute to Bangladesh’s Circular Economy Action Plan, SDG 12 (Sustainable Consumption and Production), and national commitments to reduce plastic waste. By strengthening the role of informal waste workers and promoting sustainable practices, the project aligns with both environmental sustainability and inclusive economic growth.

Project Goal

To promote sustainable plastic waste management in urban communities by enhancing plastics recovery, segregation, and recycling capacity, empowering waste actors, and strengthening circular economy approaches.

Specific Objectives

• Build the capacity of community-based private waste collectors to improve plastic waste recovery.
• Provide essential equipment, repair support, and PPE to waste workers and organizations.
• Upgrade and rehabilitate local waste collection and material recovery facilities.
• Strengthen community awareness and behavioral change on responsible plastic use and disposal.
• Support municipal actors to operationalize improved waste management and recycling systems aligned with circular economy principles.
• Enhance local data, monitoring, and reporting systems for plastic flow and recovery.
• Foster gender-responsive and inclusive plastic waste systems by integrating marginalized groups.
• Promote sustainable plastic practices through education and collaboration with key stakeholders.

Target Groups & Beneficiaries

• Direct Beneficiaries: 2,000 Waste Workers (600 Women, 1,400 Men)
• Indirect Beneficiaries: Cottage, Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (CMSMEs) and local communities

Project Outputs

• Strengthened collaboration with stakeholders to promote plastic waste circularity
• Plastics Waste Market System Developed
• Gender responsive information and plastic waste traceability mechanism established
• Awareness, knowledge, and capacities been developed among urban residents

 

Project Activities

Strengthened Collaboration with stakeholders to promote plastic waste circularity

• Activity Result 1.1: Establishing Circularity Hub in collaboration with Industry association and Govt agencies.
• Activity Result 1.2: Workshop and policy dialogues on plastic waste management “Addressing the gender issue”.
• Activity Result 1.3: Communication/PR materials production

Plastics Waste Market System Developed

• Activity Result 2.1: Business model development, and market linkage for CMSMEs involved in plastic waste recycling
• Activity Result 2.2: Support Waste Collection private organizations to improve the quality and efficiency of waste
• Activity Result 2.3: Support to Privately owned Materials sorting and segregation facilities
• Activity Result 2.4: Deliver gender-sensitive training on BEP for plastic waste collector, sorting and recycling stakeholders

Gender Responsive Information and Plastic Waste Traceability Mechanism Established

• Activity Result 3.1: Baseline Study on the plastic waste situation in 03 Cities (Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar & Tangail)
• Activity Result 3.2: Plastic Waste informal sector analysis in the cities including Market Value Chain analysis.
• Activity Result 3.3: Technology platform (Ecopia: online marketplace for plastic waste) development
• Activity Result 3.4: Plastic Waste value chain actors onboarding drive to technology platform
• Activity Result 3.5: Conduct gender analysis (In 03 Cities) of waste value chain

Awareness & Behavior Change Communication

• Activity Result 4.1: Enhancing Health and safety arrangements of plastic waste worker specially women (and their children) engaged in the plastic waste value chain
• Activity Result 4.2: Gender- Sensitive communication and outreach
• Activity Result 4.3: Environmental Stewardship Campaign (Community-level Awareness development, including private sector, NGO, local administration)

Expected Results / Outcomes

• Improved capacity of local actors to recover, segregate, and recycle plastic waste.
• Enhanced operational safety and efficiency of community waste collectors.
• Strengthened community-driven material recovery system contributing to circular economy transition.
• Reduced plastic leakage into drains, canals, rivers, and marine ecosystems in Chattogram.
• Increased public awareness and behavioral change regarding plastic use, disposal, and reuse.