To help combat the growing solid waste problem in the country, Robyouthfoundation joined the environment ministry and the rest of the world in the international clean-up day held over the weekend. The global clean-up day originated in Estonia in 2008, when 50 000 people came together to clean up the entire country in five hours. This led to the initiative spreading to other parts of the world.

“People tend to leave trash anywhere and everywhere. As a youth organisation, we decided to clean up the Ausblick mountain hiking site. We really think people need to play their part in ensuring the cleanliness of the country,” said a marketing manager of Robyouthfoundation Mary Mutonga.

Es t abl i shed in 2019, Robyouthfoundation aims to alleviate social problems faced by Namibian youth, such as unemployment and teenage pregnancy. Mutonga, who is a regular hiker on the mountain, said she had noticed how the place was always untidy, despite it being in the vicinity of State House. “There are animals in the area, and we do not want them to die due to plastic pollution. We want to keep our environment clean; hence, we have embarked on this project,” she added.

To play its role in keeping the nation clean, the foundation has pledged to roll out the cleaning initiative in all regions. F o u n d e r o f Robyouthfoundation Robert Maseka is calling upon the youth to join the initiative. “We have come on board to participate and make sure there is an awareness of keeping our country clean. Namibia is one of the cleanest countries in the world, and we need to maintain that on a daily basis,” he advised. Any individual or company who wish to donate to the fundraising initiatives should contact Maseka on +264 81 301 773 7.

- ashikololo@nepc.com.na