UNDP Ethiopia Accelerator Lab

We work on solid waste management, COVID-19 challenges, integrating skills and methodologies, and setting up digital systems to archive grassroot innovations.

Our main challenge is waste management as it touches on climate and the economy. We began with an exploration of the system which highlighted three main areas of intervention for us. First, was to understand the attitudes of household waste segregation through a behavioral insight study. We looked for best practices, motivating and demotivating factors, strengths and weaknesses of institutional and legal frameworks and their impacts on segregation. Secondly, we looked at waste transportation which is currently missing in the system. We co-created and are currently testing prototypes for waste collection carts which are convenient for transporting segregated waste, easy to use for women, and which provide more efficient waste collection. Lastly, we looked at the waste market which is very informal at the moment. To create connections in this space, we held a two-day solution fest that connected 30+ waste recycling start-ups and businesses with companies and municipalities. We are also supporting the Ethiopia Country Office with managing a COVID-19 challenge grant that covers public health and digital government solutions to ensure business continuity. The team is also building a grassroots innovation database and app.