Next Media, partners launch 'Taasa Obutonde' campaign

Next Media Services in partnership with the National Environmental Authority, Vivo Energy Uganda, Uganda Breweries, and Stanbic bank have launched an environmental campaign dubbed "Taasa Obutonde", that is aimed at saving mother nature.

The campaign is based on the 3Rs of Reduction, Reuse and Recycling of plastics that will help in the sustainability of the environment.

Uganda, according to available data still ranks high on the list of countries with a high plastic disposal and management on the African continent.

Plastics, to many Ugandans, are more of a way of life, something that continues to bother environmentalists.

The 'Taasa Obutonde' campaign head and Next Media head of marketing, Pamela Adong said that even if plastics are a way of life, there is need to manage them well.

"So we are not saying that get rid of plastics completely. If we do that, then we are not being realistic," Adong said.

"What we are saying is that just like our other colleagues in other countries, can we co-exist with plastics and manage them in a more responsible way? This is achievable"

Next Media Services Chief Executive Officer Kin Kariisa said that the campaign follows success drawn from the 'Tuve ku Kaveera' campaign.

"The 'Tuve ku Kaveera' campaign closed very many factories, it made our legislators tweak some laws and starting today, we are yet again launching another serious campaign that will last three years to change the mindset of Ugandans [on plastics]," Kariisa said.

Alvin Mbugua, the managing director Uganda Breweries Limited (UBL) said that since many of the agro based industries in Uganda rely a lot on raw materials from the environment, they need ways to come up with sustainable habits.

"For a company to exist, we need the environment and if we cannot protect the environment from day one, then what will be there to feed the inputs to our company. It is a challenging point because then our existence is in question," Mbugua said.

Dr. Tom Okurut, the executive director of the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) said that the campaign is timely as NEMA, they are happy to be part of it.

Gilbert Assi, the Managing Director of Vivo Energy Uganda said: "We have to behave in the right way. We have to be accountable for whatever we are doing and to make sure that sustainability becomes the back bone of everything we do."

The new "Taasa Obutonde" campaign follows the success of the Tuve ku Kaveera campaign that registered massive success which helped in enforcement of reduction in plastic use by Ugandan companies.