When we throw away a plastic bottle, container or piece of cardboard, its journey does not necessarily end with the rubbish bin. Across Cambodia, waste collectors, junkyard owners and other informal workers play an important role in collecting and sorting materials that can still have value.

At a junkyard in Cambodia, Ms. Rim Sotheary buys a range of recyclable materials — from bottles and different types of plastic to cardboard, aluminium cans and metal. Her business is connected to a wider network of people who collect and sell recyclable materials.

“I am a junkyard owner. I buy recyclable materials such as bottles, plastic, colored plastic, paper/cardboard, aluminum cans and metal. On average, about 50–60 people come to sell their materials to me.”

Every day, people collect materials from communities and bring them to businesses like her, where recyclable items can be sorted and moved onwards for further processing.

For Ms. Sotheary, the value of this work goes beyond business.

“First of all, it helps reduce waste in local areas. We collect solid waste for recycling, this helps the environment.”

Yet Cambodia’s recycling system still faces major challenges. In 2022 alone, the country generated 546 kilotonnes (kt) of plastic waste across five key categories, averaging at 33 kilograms (kg) per capita. Yet only 5% of Cambodia’s plastic waste is properly managed, with less than 2% recycled. The remaining plastic ends up in dumpsites, being openly burned or leaking into the environment. Without urgent intervention, this crisis will continue to escalate, seriously threatening Cambodia’s ecosystems and public health.

Transforming Cambodia’s plastic system requires bold, coordinated action across the value chain. To drive this progress, in 2023, Cambodia launched NPAP Cambodia in collaboration with the World Economic Forum’s Global Plastic Action Partnership (GPAP). Led by the Ministry of Environment, NPAP Cambodia is a cross sector, evidence-based initiative dedicated to developing a national action roadmap to reduce plastic pollution, mitigate its economic and social impacts, and accelerate Cambodia’s transition to a circular plastics economy.