With 3 million residents, the Ajegunle district is one of the most densely concentrated slums in Lagos, Nigeria. People living there often have shabby structures for homes, struggle to access to water and sanitation, and are unable to afford school fees to send their kids to school, according to the anti-poverty organization the Borgen Institute.
Known as the Recycle Pay project, plastic waste acts as currency to allow parents to pay a portion of the fees. The project was created by the African Clean Up Initiative and WeCyclers, working alongside the Morit International School in Ajegunle, according to the BBC.
The organisations made it easy for parents to exploit this initiative. Basically, they need to take a bag of plastic waste to a facility and have it weighed. The weight is then translated into a monetary value and deducted from the fees owed to the school.
The project eases the financial burden of families in the community, allows kids to go to school, and reduces the problem of plastic waste.
Source: Sunday Times
[https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/africa/2019-06-18-plastic-bottles-are-paying-for-school-in-lagos-nigeria/](https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/africa/2019-06-18-plastic-bottles-are-paying-for-school-in-lagos-nigeria/)
