Ugandan innovator Franc Kamugyisha has won the overall title of 2022 Commonwealth Young Person of the Year and will receive a total of £5,000.
Kamugyisha was awarded on Wednesday for his ‘EcoPlastile’ recycling initiative that turns consumer waste into biodegradable face-masks.
Kamugyisha was also named regional winner for Africa.
He is the founder of EcoPlastile an organisation which recycles consumer plastic and glass waste into long-lasting plastic timbers, roofing tiles and biodegradable facemasks and shields.
Kamugisha described the award as a great honour.
“Winning the Commonwealth Youth Award is a stamp of approval for our small efforts as a social enterprise. It means a lot to EcoPlastile on our strategy to scale up and impact a bigger community in Africa,” he said.
“The recognition from the Commonwealth Youth Award will enable us to get more visibility and connect us to young and like-minded young people across the world solving today’s global challenges,” he added.
Franc was inspired to start ‘EcoPlastile’ by his own experience of living in a slum community in Kampala.
“There he witnessed the dire consequences of poor waste disposal; with post-consumer waste plastic littering streets, clogging sewers, and encroaching on poorly built houses during heavy rains.
The project has created over 180 jobs paying 1.9 times the national wage, recycled 360 tonnes of plastic; and has launched a microinsurance programme through which over 100 uninsured households can use plastic waste as a financial resource for medical services,” reads the Commonwealth Youth awards statement.
The other regional award winners are: Asia: Edward Yee, Singapore, for co-founding ‘GivFunds Social Ventures,’ a non-profit organisation which provides sustainable and low-cost capital to neglected social enterprises.
“Winning the Commonwealth Youth Award is a stamp of approval for our small efforts as a social enterprise. It means a lot to EcoPlastile on our strategy to scale up and impact a bigger community in Africa,”
fRANC KAMUGYISHA
Europe and Canada was Jemima Lovatt, United Kingdom, for launching an initiative that partners with businesses to address taboo topics such as domestic abuse, sexual harassment, and unequal pay.
Caribbean was Mickel Alexander, Trinidad and Tobago, for founding ‘The 2 Cents Movement’ – a youth-led, arts-based educational programme supporting up 30,000 young people annually.
Pacific was Thompson Auri, Papua New Guinea, for a project renovating closed airstrips so isolated communities have vital access to treatment and services.