Funding woes for S.T.A.R, a Samoan non-governmental organisation (NGO) established in May 2021 dedicated to collecting and recycling plastics could be coming to an end.

The Embassy of Germany in Wellington has allocated $27,607 for the work that is done by the NGO.

The NGO also deals with e-waste to reduce waste and keep Samoa and Tokelau cleaner for future generations. 

According to the President of S.T.A.R. Mary Vito Alefosio, it is often difficult for small NGOs, largely made up of volunteers, to gain sustainable funding to support their projects. Additionally, most of the donors they talked to told them their organisation needed to be at least two years old to receive funding. 

“As an NGO we are always looking at what’s available so we keep going from embassy to embassy and the German embassy looked into it,” Alefosio said. 

Now that their organisation is just over two years old, the grant money gained through the German Embassy will help expand its operations. 

Littering has been a persistent issue in Samoa. According to the Samoa Conversation Society, around 7,000 tonnes of plastic are consumed each year, making up about 16 percent of the country's waste. Due to the lack of recycling, the majority of items go to the landfill. 

Mrs. Alefosio said diverting the plastic from going to the landfill is the most important part. However, solutions like keeping the recycling instead of exporting the waste could help turn the plastic into materials to build roads and houses. 

While this grant is a small step towards the right direction, Mrs. Alefosio said they are still looking to expand their funding by door-knocking for donors in Samoa. 

“We still have a long way to go, we’re not there yet but this is a good start,” Alefosio said. “We’re still asking around because we still need a good facility and other equipment.” 

S.T.A.R.'s views on recycling have been shared by others involved in similar work.

Samoa Recycling and Waste Management Association (SRWMA) has said the waste management industry in Samoa is struggling to entice people to view waste management as a duty of care for the environment and a healthy Samoa.

SRWMA president Marina Keil made the statement during a workshop organised by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).

“Our main drive now is to mainstream the operationalisation of our organisations to champion inclusion, diversity, equity, and access approaches in our work, to promote effective social corporate responsibilities, and to shift to a mindset that waste is wealth and should not be looked down on,” she said.