Environmental reporter launches project to rid towns off plastics

Douala-based environmental journalist of high standings, Regina Fonjia Leke, after been frustrated by the rate at which major towns in Cameroon are littered by plastics and the slow responds from the government and waste disposal company, decided to not just report about it but take matters into her own hands.

Poised to make a difference in her society, the broadcaster with Canal 2 English Television with some of her collaborators and volunteers decided to launch a project dubbed, “Recycle Me” in the nation’s economic hub, Douala.

Regina Fonjia Leke (middle) and her team on a mission to save planet earth

“Having championed for better management of the environment through my reports, I decided it was time for me to lead by example. So I started collecting these plastics from my home and as time went on I widen my scope” she told this reporter during a brief exchange.

“In Most towns in Cameroon, it is very common to see plastics in gutters, streams and rivers but little or nothing is done about it. Even though we do have a number of recycle companies around, tons of plastics can still be found on every corner of our towns with Douala and Yaounde taking the lead. Its high time we get to work” she urged.

Citing a UN environment report which states that if urgent measures are not taken by “2050 there might be more plastics in the oceans than fish”, Regina Leke has engaged dozens of youths to collect plastic in major towns in Cameroon which is then taken to a recycle company.

To her, not only are plastics a nuisance to the environment as they turn to block waterways causing most of the floods during the rainy season in towns like Yaounde and Douala, when they eventually find themselves in the ocean, they become a threat to aquatic life.

The environmental reporter who says she plans on taking the project to all towns in Cameroon in the near future, is equally the anchor of the TV show “Planet Rise” on Canal 2 English which draws the world’s attention to some of the environmental hazards and the need to take action.

The campaign which started some months ago is already yielding fruits in Douala, Limbe and Mutengene where Leke and her team have passed across with over 10.000 plastic bottles already collected and recycled.