KOICA Installs Sanitation Facilities Using Waste Plastic in Timor-Leste... COVID-19 Response

Installing Handwashing Hygiene Facilities at 30 Public Sites in Dili, Capital of Timor-Leste
Actively Using Recycled Plastic Materials to Contribute to Local Environmental Solutions

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] KOICA is actively addressing local environmental issues and responding to COVID-19 by installing simple sanitation facilities using waste plastic in Timor-Leste.

On the 29th, KOICA Timor-Leste Office announced that, together with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the European Union (EU), Timor-Leste local company Caltec, multinational company Heineken, and international development cooperation NGO Mercy Corps, they are installing 30 simple sanitation facilities mainly in areas with high foot traffic in Dili, the capital of Timor-Leste.

The Timor-Leste government has been urging citizens to maintain strict personal hygiene to prevent the spread of infectious diseases following the COVID-19 pandemic. However, local hand sanitizers are all depleted and difficult to purchase, and sanitation facilities for handwashing in multi-use facilities or public places are extremely limited.

Considering this situation, six organizations including KOICA Timor-Leste Office are providing $30,000 in support to install simple sanitation facilities centered around government offices, universities, health centers, and banks to improve public hygiene in Timor-Leste and actively contribute to COVID-19 response. KOICA will provide budget support and management for the installation of these simple sanitation facilities.

In particular, the six organizations resolved last November to jointly address the waste plastic problem in Timor-Leste. They are exploring ways to recycle the approximately 12.5 million tons of waste plastic generated annually in Timor-Leste. In fact, before the COVID-19 pandemic, KOICA Timor-Leste Office participated in local environmental protection activities by conducting beach clean-ups on the last Friday of every month and collecting unnecessary waste plastic generated in daily life to provide to recycling facilities. Waste plastic is collected by Timor-Leste local company Caltec and recycled.

It was decided to use processed materials made from waste plastic for the pavement blocks on the floor of the sanitation facilities (washbasins) and billboards installed on the walls of the sanitation facilities, and these are being installed. The amount of waste plastic used per simple sanitation facility is about 900 to 1,400 PET bottles of 600ml or 1.5L size.

The simple sanitation facilities consist of two faucets for handwashing while maintaining social distancing, billboards promoting waste plastic recycling, and flooring made from recycled waste plastic. KOICA Timor-Leste Office expects that with the installation of these washbasins, citizens of Dili will be able to wash their hands when entering multi-use places and public facilities, actively contributing to COVID-19 response. In public places with high foot traffic, about 200 people per day are expected to use the washbasins, while in government offices with relatively less foot traffic, about 50 users are expected.

Kim Sik-hyun, head of KOICA Timor-Leste Office, said, “While considering what is needed now and what we can do immediately, we thought of installing simple washbasins,” adding, “By linking this with the ongoing waste plastic recycling project and installing sanitation facilities, we aim to achieve both COVID-19 response and environmental protection simultaneously.”

Meanwhile, the Timor-Leste government declared a national emergency due to COVID-19 on March 28.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.