Lagos recycling startups turn waste crisis into income opportunity for unemployed graduates

In the bustling Ojuelegba neighborhood of Lagos, Nigeria, buying a cold drink is effortless—street vendors weave through traffic with wheelbarrows full of bottled water and canned beverages. But finding a proper disposal bin for the empty container? Nearly impossible. The result is a citywide waste crisis that has become an unexpected business opportunity for innovative recycling startups.

Mountains of plastic bottles, aluminum cans, cardboard, and glass pile up at busy intersections and clog drainage systems throughout Africa’s largest city. Lagos generates a staggering 15,000 metric tons of solid waste daily—nearly 5.5 million tons annually—with almost 40% of it recyclable, according to a 2024 World Bank study. Yet most of this valuable material ends up scattered on streets or choking waterways.

Enter companies like Pakam, which are pioneering an “Earn-As-You-Waste” model that transforms environmental cleanup into income generation. The startup recruits unemployed graduates like Bayo Adeolu, a plant biology graduate who struggled to find work in Nigeria’s competitive job market. After months of rejections and failed ventures, Adeolu discovered Pakam’s program, which trains collectors to sort, weigh, and digitally record recyclable materials before transporting them to aggregation centers.

These innovative recycling ventures represent a crucial test of whether private sector solutions can tackle Lagos’s overwhelming waste problem while providing economic opportunities for the city’s educated but underemployed youth. As urban waste continues to surge across developing nations, Lagos may offer a replicable model for turning environmental challenges into sustainable livelihoods.