What is waste for others is raw material at MBCC – 2024-08-17 11:01:51 – 2024-08-17 11:01:53 – 2024-08-17 11:03:46 – 2024-08-17 11:04:49 – 2024-08-17 11:06:25 – 2024-08-17 11:07:28

In order to address the challenges related to waste management and recovery in the city of Rumonge, Apollinaire Ndikumasabo founded Mutambara Briquettes Charcoal Company (MBCC). Since 2021, this company has been transforming various types of waste into charcoal. Despite many obstacles, it has already created more than 13 jobs and since January 2024, its daily production capacity has increased from 50 kg to 500 kg of charcoal.

Appolinaire Ndikumasabo, 39, is an entrepreneur residing on Mutambara hill, in the Gatete zone of Rumonge commune and province. Since 2021, he has started manufacturing briquettes from waste from trees, grass, paper and other types of non-plastic waste.

According to Ndikumasabo, his passion for environmental protection dates back to his youth. In 2015, he was forced to migrate to Tanzania, where he lived for 7 years. In the refugee camp where he was staying, an NGO organized a training on waste recovery. This training included the manufacture of charcoal, paving stones and organo-mineral materials, to name a few. In line with his passion, he followed this training. “My main motivation was to find a solution to the challenges of waste management and environmental protection in Burundi,” he says.

A long road full of pitfalls

After returning to Burundi in 2021, he decided to put what he had learned into practice. Seeing that trees were disappearing on the Burundian hills due to charcoal making, he started a project to protect the trees. He started by making charcoal from biodegradable waste, using rudimentary means. However, the quality of the charcoal produced was poor and the daily production did not exceed 50 kg. The market was also uncertain.

In December 2023, the company received funding of 22 million BIF from PAEEJ. This money was used to purchase machines, improving the quality and quantity of production. Today, they can produce up to 500 kg of good quality charcoal per day and their products are appreciated by their customers. This company has already created 13 jobs.

Progress, challenges too

Despite the significant progress, this company faces major challenges, including the lack of modern machinery. After collecting the waste, they sort the plastic waste and set it aside and then carbonize the rest. The ash from the carbonization of non-plastic waste is then used in a machine that turns it into charcoal briquettes. For every 40 kg of grass, 10 kg of charcoal is obtained after carbonization. Drying is a long and unpredictable process, as it is done in the sun. “We would like to have modern machines that can dry the charcoal automatically, thus producing ready-to-use charcoal,” he says.

Each kilo of charcoal produced by this company sells for 1000 BIF, which is a considerable advantage over charcoal, as MBCC charcoal is more than 4 times more efficient. However, another challenge is the fuel consumption of the machines currently in use. The fuel shortage further complicates the situation, despite the facilities provided by the local administration.

Marketing has been a major challenge for this company. As this innovator explains, Burundians have difficulty getting used to new things, which makes awareness campaigns long and costly. In this regard, he asks PAEEJ to systematically help young people with innovative projects to build up initial stocks, because this requires resources that are not covered by funding.

He encourages other young people to focus on work rather than looking for easy money. He also calls on administrators to support innovative projects launched by young people in their localities. The governor of Rumonge said that the province has already implemented initiatives to promote youth entrepreneurship. He mentions in particular the visits they make to these young people to encourage them. In addition, awareness campaigns have been organized for the population on waste collection to facilitate the task of these innovators who contribute to the cleanliness of the city.