Waste management is an essential public service that is often regulated by the government in the Philippines and frequently implemented in partnership with the private sector. Men mostly occupy the upper echelons in roles such as city managers and planners, landfill operators and heads of waste collection companies. Women are more involved in informal household and neighbourhood activities related to waste and waste collection. These activities are usually unpaid or minimally compensated.
Women working in the waste sector often experience poverty and social exclusion, as well as discrimination within the sector itself. According to WIEGO, an international organisation that advocates for women in informal employment, women have more difficult access to high-quality recyclable waste, are paid less than men, and have fewer opportunities to hold higher positions in waste management. WIEGO and other organisations, such as Women of Waste (WOW), a group affiliated with the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA), take the approach that the waste sector offers an opportunity for women in developing countries to empower themselves.
Projekt objective
The municipal administration of Bacolod City, Philippines, is strengthened in its waste management. Female waste pickers have the opportunity to earn higher incomes.