Africa-Press – Cape verde. The “Less trash, more blue” campaign is bringing together volunteers to collect trash from beaches on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde, some of which will be used as handicrafts, such as fabrics, bags, jewelry or sandals.
Campaign collects trash that gives rise to handicrafts on the beaches of Cape Verde
“We want to raise awareness among people, show that we have beautiful beaches on the island and that we must keep them clean”, contributing to “a preserved ecosystem” and creating income alternatives, explained to Lusa Rosendo Oliveira, one of the technicians of the “Amdjer de txeu” project struggle”, which translated from Creole into Portuguese means “Women of a lot of struggle”.
The objective is to improve the living conditions of those involved in the artisanal fishing chain in São Vicente.
The cleaning campaign takes place with the participation of organizations and people directly or indirectly linked to the sea, such as Biosfera Cabo Verde and the company Simili, and has already visited two beaches, the most recent on Saturday, collecting dozens of garbage bags full of glass, metal and, above all, plastic.
The bracelets made from fishing nets collected in these and other campaigns, as well as bags and different pieces, are displayed in Simili’s online catalogue, with photos where the threads that have already gone to sea are now prepared to go into artisanal looms.
At the same time, the organizers of the “Less trash, more blue” campaign present “sako dayo” to the communities they pass by, substitutes for everyday plastic bags, made from recycled fabric.
They are made by the Cape Verde Women’s Organization (OMCV) in São Vicente from waste rice bags, nets and textiles.
The project works with three communities, Mindelo, São Pedro and Calhau.
Next Saturday there will be a new garbage collection action, but the initiative is broader: “it covers several topics within the themes of the blue economy and artisanal fishing”.
“We are going to develop some training to try to help people linked to artisanal fishing to improve their living conditions”, highlighted Rosendo Oliveira.
In addition to technical and practical issues, training actions include aspects of emotional management and gender equality.
The “Amdjer de txeu struggle” project was launched in July and is carried out by the Associação Peixeiras do Mindelo, the NGOs Peace and Development and Cooperation, with funding from the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and Development (AECID).
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