Nigeria’s Recyclan, a tech-enabled recycling company, has established operations across Africa as it collects waste and exports it to the rest of the world.
Launched in 2018 by Chime Okwuokenye, Rob Homan and Molawa Adesuyi, Recyclan is on a mission to reduce Africa’s carbon footprint and make the world greener by recycling plastic waste. The startup is reducing plastic waste on beaches, landfills and in the ocean by driving collection through technology. Its mobile app and SMS service incentive people to recycle their waste, offering things like access to health insurance, sanitary towels, and schools fees in exchange. It then processes and packages this waste to customer specifications and then exports it to North America, Europe and Asia.
The company operates an inclusive value chain of activities by gainfully employing both locals of the various communities and other professionals from outside their communities. Their operations span across collections, aggregation, baling, crushing, cold washing, hot washing and eventually rPET.
Adesuyi said the company had so far recycled 2,500 metric tonnes of plastic waste, the equivalent of more than 1,500 cars. Self-funded thus far, Recyclan has nonetheless expanded its waste collection operations across the continent. It is active in eight states of Nigeria, as well as Ghana, Togo, Benin, Cameroon, Burkina Faso and Kenya. “Leveraging on regional agreements that are currently being made in Africa we plan to use technology to scale our recycling model across Africa,” said Adesuyi.
