BUJUMBURA July 30th (ABP) – The Environment, Agriculture and Livestock Minister Déo Guide Rurema calls on traders to use biodegradable packaging in their businesses. That appeal was launched during the celebration on July 16 of the day dedicated to the environment coupled with that of the fight against desertification and drought in Muyinga (northeastern Burundi).
Mr. Rurema said that the law banning the import, manufacture, marketing and use of bags and other plastic packaging was put in place on August 8, 2018 and that the grace period that was granted to traders to dispose of stocks and orders expired on February 8, 2020.
According to Minister Déo Guide Rurema, as soon as the law was announced, there was speculation on the part of some traders about imports, which led to resistance in the use of bags and other plastic packaging.
Six months before the expiration of this grace period, Minister Rurema brought together traders and sellers of plastic bags and industrialists who make substitutes for these bags which are biodegradable.
He says the Burundian population is starting to show positive behavior in the use of biodegradable materials, such as in nurseries where banana peels have been used.
The use of biodegradable packaging is also noticed in some supermarkets or shops instead of sachets.
The Minister responsible for the environment encourages users of biodegradable packaging and invites sellers of bags to get used to selling biodegradable bags and using biodegradable packaging.
He further pointed out that given the electoral context in which the country finds itself, there are activities that were not carried out on time. “We are doing a final assessment and we will publish the status,” added the minister responsible for the environment. The Burundi Revenue Office (OBR), it is reported, seized on Monday July 27, 2020 in the Kibenga neighborhood of the Kinindo zone 60 kg of non-biodegradable bags illegally imported for sale and use.