MINISTRY of Health Permanent Secretary in Charge of Administration Dr George Magwende says that the environment has been always dirty, even before Personal Protective Equipments (PPEs), were introduced.
Dr Magwende also believes that there should be increased awareness among school-going children about preventive measures, as adults are already spoilt.
Conwell Hakapya, executive director of Citizens Environmental and Social Concern (CESCo), expressed concern last week that there was still no proper disposal system for Personal Protective Equipment.
Hakapya stated that incinerators used in residential areas to dispose of PPEs had negative effects on the environment as well as human health.
Dr Magwende however stated in an interview that the environment was still filthy even if there were no PPEs.
He stated that people didn’t care about the environment and that there was a need to change this mentality.
“I totally agree with you Dorothy, even before PPEs came into play, have you seen how much plastic bottles we throw around? It is the same illness we are referring too, environmental awareness. How many sweets wraps have been passed around? How many bottles of water did we share? How many plastics do we have to dispose of after using it? This mentality is what makes it difficult for you and me to properly dispose of PPEs. Some jurisdictions have bins for biodegradables. Others have bins for paper, plastics, and biodegradables. We have bins that can hold everything. Somebody will throw something on the ground and bypass a bin. It is not about the PPEs; it’s about our mentality. So we need to work on our mentality,” Dr Magwende said.
“How many times have you seen somebody throw something out of the window? We need to instill that care in our children, regardless of whether it’s PPEs or not. It is all plastic, it’s not biodegradable, and it degrades the environment. This is not about Covid. It shouldn’t be about PPEs. Instead, it should be about how we approach life and how we treat our environment. I’m sure you have been to places where there isn’t litter, but there are people who take care of the environment. Here you just go, just outside UTH you will see how much litter is around because we dont care about the environment, even without PPEs, our environment is dirty, was dirty, so we need to change that.”
Dr Magwende stated that there was a need to raise awareness about preventive measures among school-going students, as adults are already spoilt.
“For me, the best way to deal with it, it would be to instill that cleanness, that awareness in the children because you and I are already spoiled. Yes, some things may need to be changed in adulthood, but they are already spoilt. [it is]Very difficult. This is why we integrate it with the education system. Your kid tells you ‘no mum this is wrong, no mum teacher says…’, it becomes very easy for you to follow because you dont want to be embarrassed in front of your child. This becomes a stronger argument, a stronger tool for us to use to make changes. So I think the school system is a very important tool for the fundamental changes that we need to make,” said Dr Magwende.
“We need to enhance awareness about preventive measures among the school-going children. It is important to instill a sense of prevention such as washing hands, wearing masks and avoiding crowded places, getting vaccinated, and healthy living habits like jogging and watching what you eat. It will help prevent many future diseases. Today, we are dealing with Covid. We don’t know what tomorrow might bring. But the principles of managing such problems will still be the same, so why not learn now, to abate future calamities?”
