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Private Waste Contractors and Solid Waste Management in Anambra State

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 Social Development
NG-Journal of Social Development, VOL. 6, No. 1, February 2017

Journal homepage: www.arabianjbmr.com/NGJSD_index.php

PRIVATE WASTE CONTRACTORS AND SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT IN

ANAMBRA STATE

Dennis S.C. Amobi

Raphael Emeka Agu
Department of Public Administration, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Nigeria

Abstract
The rapid growth of urban population in Anambra State has far-reaching implications for waste generation
and management. This study therefore examines the role of private waste contractors in solid waste
management in the state. The study anchored on the New Public Management theory. The descriptive
survey research method was adopted and data was collected from primary and secondary sources. Four
hundred questionnaires were distributed. The data generated were analyzed using descriptive statistics like
frequency count, percentages and mean scores. The hypotheses formulated were tested with regression
analysis. The findings show among others that solid waste recycling has not been adequately adopted by
the state government and the private waste contractors as a waste management strategy. The State
government is therefore encouraged to thoroughly review their contractual agreement with the private
waste contractors to ensure that perceived inadequacies in their operations are addressed for enhanced
service delivery. There is also need for intensified enlightenment campaign to ensure that citizens imbibe
the right sanitary habit.
Keywords: Private Waste Contractors, Solid Waste Management

Introduction
Studies show that Nigeria is one of the most urbanizing countries among developing nations in the world,
(Iyida, 2015). It is believed that over 240 urban centers exist in Nigeria with a population of about 35 million
people and urbanization level of 42% (Nwachukwu, 2009; and Ezeodili, 2013). According to the United
States Report (2000), Nigeria may reach an urbanization level of 61.6% by the year 2025. These statistics
and projections are good because urbanization carries with it enhanced business growth and opportunities,
entrepreneurial development, increased infrastructural facilities and agglomeration economies.
However, the rapid growth in urban population in Nigeria has far-reaching implications for waste
generation and management. In 1983, the total volume of solid waste generation in Nigeria cities was about
a million tones and it was projected to about 15 million tonnes by the year 2000 (Uwadiegwu & Chukwu,
2010). Presently, there are fears about the capability of urban administrators to cope with the management
of solid waste. The volume of solid waste being generated continues to increase at a faster rate than the
ability of the agencies to improve on the financial and technical resources needed to parallel this growth.
This is why Ogweleke (2009) stated that solid waste management has emerged as one of the greatest
challenges facing state and local environmental protection agencies in Nigeria.
Solid waste management is one of the major services provided solely by the government for several years
in Nigeria. It is on record that since the 1976 Local Government Reforms, the collection and disposal of
solid waste have been the statutory responsibilities of local government authorities in Nigeria. In some
cases, state governments have joined hands with their local authorities in the management of waste in most
of the urban places in the country. Despite the synergy of efforts between both state government and local

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authorities, solid waste management, especially, the organic portion of the waste has continued to be a
major environmental problem in Nigeria indicating that an effective and efficient waste management plan
is not yet in place. It is obvious that the government is presently not managing the waste system efficiently
and will require the collaboration of the private sector. The existing era of private and public sector
dichotomy must give way to a robust period of participation between the two in municipal solid waste
management (Olufemi, Egbuta & Adejuwon, 2011).
The negative impact of solid waste on the environment and on people’s health is critical, and this was aptly
stated by Momodu, Dimuna & Dimuna (2010) and Agwu (2012) when they revealed that the World Health
Organisation (WHO) and United Nations International Children Education Fund (UNICEF) reported that
about 2.4 billion people will likely face the risk of needless disease and death by the target of 2015 because
of bad sanitation. The report also noted that bad sanitation-decaying or non-existent sewage system and
toilets fuels the spread of disease like cholera and common illness like diarrhoea, which kills a child every
twenty-one (21) seconds. The hardest hit by bad sanitation is rural poor and resident of slum areas in fast-
growing cities, mostly in Africa and Asia. This critical report underscores the dangers of poor solid waste
management on our urban centres. Hence, solid waste management is crucial in a bid to ensuring that the
environments we inhabit are clean, conducive and habitable.
In Anambra State, the state government rebranded the waste management agency from Anambra State
Environmental Protection Agency (ANSEPA) to Anambra State Waste Management Agency (ASWAMA)
yet the challenges of properly managing solid wastes (the issues of ineffective collection, transportation,
monitoring (enforcement of sanitation laws), recycling, treatment and disposal of solid wastes) in Anambra
State still persist. The level of public awareness and attitudes to solid waste in Anambra State is also very
poor. It is not unusual to see heaps of wastes dumped indiscriminately; roads and streets littered with
garbage; drainages completely blocked by solid wastes; and unofficial refuse dumps created by anyone who
cares to create one anywhere. It has become a culture for waste receptacles to be filed to the brim and wastes
littered on the roads before the waste management agency will evacuate them. And most times, it takes
three to four days for waste receptacles to be returned. These poor sanitary practices are appalling and
constitute serious health challenges to the inhabitants of the cities in Anambra State.
Due to the inability of the Anambra State Government to effectively manage the huge tonnes of solid waste
generated in its cities, private waste contractors were invited to partner with the Anambra State
Government. It is expected that the participation of the private waste contractors will effectively and
efficiently manage solid waste in Anambra State as evident in other States of the Federation and countries
(Akaateba & Yakubu, 2013; Anazodo, Okoye, Dim & Agbionu, 2011; Kassim, 2009 and Madinah, 2016)
where it was introduced.
Solid waste management, as a process of collection, transportation, storage, treatment, monitoring,
recycling resources, and disposal of solid waste involves huge expenditure and specialized skills hence the
need for partnership with the private sector. To this end, the broad objective of this study is to examine the
role of private waste contractors in solid waste management in Anambra State. The specific objectives of
the work are to:
i. Ascertain whether the private waste contractors have contributed significantly to solid waste
collection and disposal in Anambra State.
ii. Determine whether the private waste contractors have contributed significantly to solid waste
recycling in Anambra State.
iii. Ascertain the extent private waste contractors have contributed to public enlightenment on good
sanitary practices in Anambra State.
In order to gain better insight on the background of this study, the literatureon the solid waste management
in Nigeria is thematically organized into the following sub-themes and reviewed:
(ii) Solid waste management.
(iii) Solid waste collection and disposal in Anambra State.
(iv) Solid waste recycling in Anambra State.
(v) Public enlightenment on sanitary practices in Anambra State

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Solid Waste Management

Solid waste management is a polite term for garbage management. As long as humans are living in
communities, solid waste will continue to be an issue. Modern societies generate far more solid waste than
early humans ever did. Daily life in industrialized nations can generate several pounds (kilogrammes) of
solid waste while agricultural wastes, commercial and household wastes are generated in large quantum
prompting for effective ways of managing than in order to avoid environmental pollution. Solid wastes are
all discarded, putrescible and non-putrescible solid and semi-solid wastes, including garbage, trash, refuse,
paper, rubbish, ashes, construction and demolition wastes, discarded home and industrial appliances,
manure, vegetable or semi-solid wastes and others substances or material resulting from various community
activities. Solid waste consists, therefore of discarded materials resulting from domestic and community
activities and from industrial, commercial and agricultural operation (Okpechi, 2007 and Ezigbo, 2012).
These solid wastes generated from different categories of people and various economic activities are usually
very large, posing great challenge to the society in form of blocked drainage, littering of streets, air and
water pollution and health related diseases. In a bid to ensuring proper collection, transportation, treatment,
recycling and disposal of these solid wastes, the issue of efficient service delivery in solid waste
management becomes inevitable.
The needs for proper solid waste management, according to Eberinwa (2010) are; to preserve the aesthetic
beauty of the environment and ensure favourable living and working conditions for man; to avoid pollution
by not directly or indirectly altering the physical biological and thermal properties of any part of the
environment by allowing such refuse to accumulate in excessive or dangerous amount or to create a
condition which is hazardous to public health and safety or welfare to animals and plants; and to try to
reduce the incidence of epidemics of available diseases, which often results from failure or delay in
disposing wastes. The objective of solid waste management is basically the use of resources efficiently in
the process of waste materials (Squires in Yaaba, 2012).
The components of solid waste management identified by Iloanya (2011) include; solid waste generation;
solid waste evacuation and solid waste disposal. It is critical to adopt a broad approach in developing a
working framework for solid waste management. This covers the social, economic, technological, political
and administrative dimensions. For example, the social dimension of solid waste management involves
waste minimization; the economic dimension of solid waste management involves waste recycling; the
technological dimension involves waste disposal; and the political and administrative and disposal. The
waste management hierarchy (minimization recovery and transformation and disposal) has been adopted
by most industrialized nations as the menu for developing solid waste management strategies. The extent
to which any one option is used within a given country however varies, depending on a number of factors,
such as topography, population density and transportation infrastructure, socioeconomic and environmental
regulations (Eberinwa, 2010 and Salai in Babalola et al, 2010).
There are a range of actors in solid waste management and they are be clustered into to four groups, which
are the public sector (national authorities, local public departments) constituting a central set of players; the
private sector (large and small registered enterprises carrying out collection; transport, disposal and
recycling); the small scale non-recognized private sector (waste pickers, itinerant buyers, traders in waste
materials and non-registered small scale enterprise); local community and its representatives (NGOs and
CBOs). In solid waste management systems, the stakeholders involves are varied and numerous. The
federal, State and Local Governments are all involved in waste management in Nigeria. The federal
government oversees the state and local agencies and authorities that manage waste in the country. A wide
range of individuals, groups and organizations are involved as services users, service providers,
intermediaries and regulators. There are formal and informal private sectors. The formal private sector
includes a wide range of enterprise types, varying from informal micro enterprises to large business
establishments. They are primarily interested in earning a return in their investment by waste collection,
transfer, treatment, recycling and/or disposal services. They may as well provide management and

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organizational capacity, labour and/or technical skills. The informal private sectors comprise unregistered,
unregulated activities carried out by individual, families groups or small enterprise. Their basic motivation
is self-organised revenue generation. These informal, unregulated private sector companies are often driven
to work as waste collectors or scavengers. Communities and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are
also partners in solid waste management. NGOs operate between the private and government realms. They
are motivated primarily by humanitarian and/or developmental concerns. They help to increase the capacity
of people or community groups to play an active role in local solid waste management. The communities
form community based organisations to upgrade local environmental conditions, improve services and/or
petitions the government for service improvement (Baud in Yaaba, 2012).
The notable techniques for solid waste management include refuse composting, incineration, sanitary,
landfill/dumpsites and anaerobic digestion (Chukwujindu, 2010 and Momodu, Dimuna and Dimuna, 2011).
Solid waste management in developing countries is predicted to face a great challenge in the future owing
to their rapid urbanization and economic growth. Empirical analyses using macroeconomic data indicates
that the per capita generation of solid waste is at least 0.3-0.4 kilograms per day even for the poorest people.
In general, a one percent increase in population is associated with a 1.04 percent increase in solid waste
generation, and a one percent increase in per capita income is associated with a 0.34 percent increase in
total solid waste generation (Afroz, 2009). Irrespective of the fact that most of the developing countries are
still in the early stage of their urbanization and economic development, it is generally expected that the
challenges of solid waste generation and management could be avoidable in such countries considering that
most cities in developing countries spends significant portions of their municipal revenue on waste
management (Osumanu, 2007), but they are often unable to keep pace with the scope of the problem.
Senkoro (2003) indicated that for many African countries, only less than 30% of the urban population has
access to proper and regular garbage removal (Altaf & Deshazo, 1996). The current practice of collecting,
processing and disposing municipal solid wastes is also considered to be least efficient in the developing
countries. The typical problems are ―low collection coverage and irregular collection services, crude open
dumping and burning without air and inefficient water pollution control, the breading of flies and vermin,
and the mishandling and uncontrolled informal waste picking or scavenging activities (Bartone, 1995).
Solid Waste Collection and Disposal in Anambra State
Waste collection is a part of the process of waste management. It is the transfer of solid waste from the
point of use and disposal to the point of treatment or landfill. Waste collection also includes the curbside
collection of recyclable materials that technically are not waste, as part of a municipal landfill
diversion programme (Wikipedia, 2015). Waste collection is the collection of solid waste from point of
production (residential, industrial commercial, institutional) to the point of treatment or disposal (World
Bank, 2012).
Ewuim (2012) identified house-to house system and neighborhood/communal depots system as two major
solid waste collection systems in many urban centres in Nigeria. According to her, house-to-house system
is a waste collection system whereby each household collects its refuse and waste in a refuse bin or in a
cellophane bag; and subsequently disposes it through the private refuse collectors or through the
government agency that has the responsibility for collecting refuse. However, the greatest problem
militating against this system is that, the agency charged with the duties of moving around the cities is often
times inefficient; making household refuse to be scattered around the cities by some impatient residents. In
the neighborhood/communal depots system, the government and its environmental agency encourage the
residents of the urban centres to carry their waste and refuse to a designated community refuse dump. These
types of refuse collection points are located in some strategic areas for easy access. The problem of this
system is that, most of these temporary dumping sites becomes breeding areas for rodents and flies, and
consequently, constitute embarrassing sights for residents and passersby, especially when the refuse are not
evacuated on time by the environmental agencies.
Eberinwa (2010) sees solid waste disposal as the final stage of waste management. It is the dumping of
solid waste on designated sites. Different methods of waste disposal systems are being practiced throughout
the world. The disposal systems can be categorized into on-site and out-site disposal technique. On-site

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disposal system involves the use of home grinder, compactors and incinerators which operate like those of
out-site disposal system. They are only suitable for a small number of households and are generally more
susceptible to pollution because of the use of unskilled manpower. The highly notable waste disposal
system includes hog feeding, open dumping, sanitary landfill, composting and pyrolysis (Uchegbu in
Eberinwa, 2010).
According to Egunjobi in Agwu (2012), the problem of effective solid waste management has to do with
poor social services delivery efforts which cause unnecessary delays in solid waste clearance. It is either
broken down machinery, non-maintenance of dumpsters, poorly maintained urban streets and roads and
irregularities in the designation of sanitary landfill sites. Nigerians seem to be permanently accustomed to
dirt. Evidence of this can be seen every day by way of indiscriminate discharge of garbage into drains and
at times on the highways. Studies have revealed that household account for about half of the solid wastes
generated, that is, by weight in the third world cities.
According to the World Bank (2001), waste generation is greatly influenced by a country’s development.
Generally, the more economically prosperous a country is, the more waste it generates per capita but the
factor that seem to bridge the gap between waste generation and it’s resultant effect is the method or
efficiency of waste management strategy adopted by such country. A typical example could be seen when
comparing the waste situation in developed countries like; Britain, United States of America, Canada where
there exist much economic activities that generate more waste but with a corresponding well organized
waste management system compared to the situation in developing countries like; Nigeria, Ghana and
Cameroun with their steady increase in population and a corresponding increase in their rate of waste
generation from industrial and human activities but without an efficient waste management system. It is
realized that the waste situation in developed countries are much better than that of the developing countries
irrespective of the volume of waste they generate due to the waste management strategy they practice or
employ.
Solid Waste Recycling in Anambra State
It is wasteful to throw away anything that could be made use of, particularly when there is a desperate need
for it elsewhere. Waste recycling is an interesting approach to achieve an efficient, integrated manner of
management of municipal solid waste. However, MSW recycling is restricted to well segregated materials.
This is partly due to the fact that most of the industries do not actively promote take-back recycling as
practiced in developed countries such as in Japan. However, if the raw materials scavenged from wastes
are recycled, it is expected that there will be a reduction in the energy associated costs by industries during
production because recycling provides easily obtainable manufacturing feedstock (Otitoju, 2014).
According to Ewuim (2012), solid waste recycling is a scientifically converted to other good uses; through
this method waste and refuse are categorized and sorted out before they can be converted to other good
uses. However, the method is capital intensive as financial, material (technological) and human resources
are needed.
The practice of recycling solid waste is an ancient one. Metal implements were melted down and recast in
prehistoric times. Today, recyclable materials are recovered from municipal refuse by a number of methods,
including shredding, magnetic separation of metals, air classification that separates light and heavy
fractions, screening, and washing. Increasingly, municipalities and private refuse-collection organizations
are requiring those who generate solid waste to keep bottles, cans, newspapers, cardboard, and other
recyclable items separate from other waste. Special trucks pick up this waste and cart it to transfer stations
or directly to recycling facilities, thus lessening the load at incinerators and landfills (Sharma, 2009).
Solid waste recycling in Anambra State is usually carried out by the employees of the waste management
agency, private waste contractors and the informal sector. Otitoju (2014) stated that, often times, some
individual stores unlimited amount of recyclables such as cans, bottles, plastics, newspapers at their
residents hoping to sell it to itinerant buyers, or to house-to house collectors of which only few lucky
individuals get their recyclable materials sold to these itinerant buyers. As soon as they get frustrated of
these piles of waste, they open burnt them at their resident thereby causing air pollution and also open dump
some materials like cans, glass, etc. This recyclables have significant potentials for recovery if there is

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effective waste recycling (collection) strategy. Such sorting is carried out by the informal sector most
dominated by the scavengers with the use of carts for collections, both from street bins and at the dumpsite.
Scavengers normally have no formal education, vocational training or access to appropriate equipment and
do not normally have alternative employment opportunities in the formal sector. The scavengers and other
informal sector recyclers generally sell their recovered materials to middlemen, who in turn sell to small
and large scale processing and manufacturing industries. For instance, collected glass is processed and
recycled locally as cullet for use in the glass industry; whole/complete glass bottles are cleaned and reused
as syrup, drinks and juice containers; the base of broken bottles are sold to small scale industries that cut
and polish the glass to manufacture items such as ash trays and candle holders (Cheeseman, Imam &
Mohammed, 2008).
Recycling option according to Onwughara, Nnorom & Kanno (2010) is the use or reuse of a waste as a
substitution for a commercial product or as a feedstock to an industrial process. These include on-site or
off-site reclamation of useful fractions of a waste or removal of contamination from a waste to allow its
reuse. There are different techniques of recycling;
a. Reuse: This is using item again after their initial consumer use in past either return to original process as
re-manufacturing, examples as with copier machines or automobile alternators and as material substitute
for another process. Example, reuse of old wood furniture.
b. Reclamation: This is recovery material from waste products so that it can be used again either processed
for resource or processed as a by-product. Example, reclaiming glass from old bottles.
This recycling option has been set nationally, unfortunately, the definitions of recycling, rates of recycling
and appropriate components of solid waste vary. It has been found to be costly for most municipalities
compared to landfill disposal. Recycling is a good option only if environmental impacts and the resources,
used to collect, sort and recycle a material to provide equivalent virgin material plus the resources needed
to dispose of the post-consumer material safely. Before recycling can occur, the materials must be collected
from consumers, a reversal of the logistics system that distributed products to consumers. One of this
method of reverse logistics system that is universal, cheap and reliable is curbside pickup system with it
peculiar advantages, other method of reverse logistic system include consumer taking recyclable to a central
collection point and returning them to the retailer as part of a deposit-refund system (Onwughara, Nnorom
& Kanno, 2010).
Public Enlightenment on Sanitary practices in Anambra State
The role of people in solid waste management in Anambra State is crucial. The solid waste disposal habit
of the people goes a long way to determine the extent to which the environment is clean. The sanitary state
of an area is largely influenced by the handling practices of the residents and the measures in place to safe
waste evacuation and disposal (Modebe, Onyeonoro, Ezeana, Ogbuagu & Agam, 2009; Onyanta, 2012;
Chukwuemeka, Ugwu & Igwebe, 2012, and Uma, Nwaka & Enwere, 2013). Most people have nonchalant
attitude towards waste disposal. This kind of person could be perceived as one who litters the environment
like no man’s business with no regards or respect to the environment. They do not consider the need to
appraise or talk to people and neighbour around them for positive or negative behaviour. They do not
consider living in a clean environment as essential. They play passive role in sanitation activities and need
to cooperate with others in cleaning up residential surroundings because of their negative attitude. The main
reason for the incessant growth of waste volumes in our urban centre is as a result of the ignorance of some
dwellers towards the effect of indiscriminate dumping of refuse and carefree attitude of most of the dwellers
who know what should be done, but they are careless about it (Afangideh, Joseph & Atu, 2012).
The incidence of poor sanitary practices in Anambra State is a perplexing problem. Solid wastes are
generated in large quantity from commercial, agricultural, industrial, institutional and domestic activities,
with little or no effort by those generating these solid wastes to properly dispose them. The government and
its waste management agency (ASWAMA) have devised several strategies to achieve effective service
delivery in solid waste management, yet the poor sanitary practices of the people have negatively hampered
the government efforts. Some of the strategies include; providing receptacles in strategic sites to curtail
indiscriminate solid waste disposal, encouraging commercial vehicle drivers to have solid waste bins in

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their vehicles; carrying out sensitization or public awareness programmes on the need to keep Anambra
State clean; and most recently, enforcing the public to dispose their solid waste in nylon bags before final
disposal to the receptacles. Despite these strategies, the poor sanitary disposition of the public towards
waste management still persists. Solid wastes are still disposed indiscriminately; passengers dispose their
solid waste on the road while the vehicles are in motion; commercial vehicle drivers hardly have waste bins
in their vehicles, even when they have, the passengers unconsciously dispose waste on the roads because it
has become the value of the society; and most often, solid wastes are disposed in nylon bags before putting
them in the receptacles.
These poor sanitary practices by the residents of Anambra State have led to environmental pollution and
degradation capable of posing serious threat to public health. Momodu, Dimuna & Dimuna (2010) and
Agwu (2012) revealed that the World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations International
Children Education Fund (UNICEF) reported that about 2.4 billion people will likely face the risk of
needless disease and death by the target of 2015 because of bas sanitation. The report also noted that bad
sanitation-decaying or non-existent sewage system and toilets fuels the spread of disease like cholera and
basic illness like diarrhoea, which kills a child every 21 seconds. The harvest hit by bad sanitation is rural
poor and resident of slum areas in fast-growing cities, mostly in Africa and Asia. This critical report
underscores the dangers of poor public sanitary habits and the inevitability of effective implementation
environmental protection laws in Anambra State.
Solid waste collection, disposal processing, treatment, recycling and utilization have defied solution as a
result of the attitude of some Nigerians. It is believed that the waste disposal habit of the people, corruption,
work attitude, inadequate plants and equipment among others are the major factors militating against
effective solid waste management.

Empirical Review
Ndumbu (2013) examines the factors affecting success of private sector participation in solid waste
management in Mombasa County. The aim of the study was to come up with knowledge that will assist the
municipal councils in Kenya to address those factors so that the cities could be clean. Data collection was
collected using questionnaires and interviews schedules from the respondents in the area of study. Purposive
random sampling was used to collect primary data from the residents. The data were analyzed using Pearson
correlation. Findings found that there was a relationship or correlation between the success of PPPs in solid
waste management and the capacity of the garbage collection companies, monitoring and evaluation,
transparent and competitive procurement, and public participation. The study established that there was
inadequate capacity in the Mombasa City Council to effectively collect and dispose of solid waste hence
leaving their responsibility to the private companies which have also been ineffective due to challenges
with regards to capacity to effectively meet the demands of the bulging population. The study therefore that
engaging private practitioners in garbage collection is the possible solution to the solid waste management
challenges facing Mombasa city.
Kassim (2009) examined sustainability of private sector in municipal solid waste collection in Dar es
Salaam, Tanzania. Content analysis was adopted for the study. Kassim (2009) examined sustainability of
private sector in municipal solid waste collection in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.Findings show that the
involvement of the private sector in solid waste management has proved to be possible and promising
alternative in the solid waste management services leading to the improvement of sanitation in developing
countries. In Dar es Salaam, the study noted solid waste collection leads to increased performance efficiency
and environmental protection and has created employment to many. The study concluded that, for the
sustainability of private sector, there rise a need to develop mechanisms which guarantee a long term service
and efficient performance. Firstly, it needs a favourable working condition, and secondly, the commitment
of the private sectors itself in the service. The success of the private sector and sustainability is justified by
the arrangement which offers the correct incentives, sufficient flexibility in management and the need to
compete in a market. Going along with this argument the private sector needs the appropriate financial and

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human resources and technological knowhow. However, more support is needed from the government and
other institutions to the sector.
Yoada, Chirawurah & Adongo (2014) investigated domestic waste disposal practice and perceptions of
private sector waste management in urban Accra. The study utilized a mixed-method approach. A cross-
sectional survey questionnaire and in-depth interview were used to collect data. A total of 364 household
heads were interviewed in the survey and six key informants were interviewed with the in-depth interviews.
The results of the study revealed that 93.1% of households disposed of food debris as waste and 77.8%
disposed of plastic materials as waste. The study also showed that 61.0% of the households disposed of
their waste at community bins or had waste picked up at their homes by private contractors. The remaining
39.0% disposed of their waste in gutters, streets, holes and nearby bushes. Of those who paid for the services
of private contractors, 62.9% were not satisfied with the services because of their cost and irregular
collection. About 83% of the respondents were aware that improper waste management contributes to
disease causation; most of the respondents thought that improper waste management could lead to malaria
and diarrhoea. The study concluded that proper education of the public, the provision of more communal
trash bins, and the collection of waste by private contractors could help prevent exposing the public in
municipalities to diseases.
Alakinde (2012) examines private participation in solid waste management in Nigerian cities taking Ibadan
South West Local Government Area as a case study. The study employs questionnaire as instrument of data
collection while descriptive statistics was used to analyse the data collected. The result shows that 28% and
20.4% of the residents generated leaves and waterproof bag used in wrapping food respectively. The study
also shows that majority of the residents in high density zones are using unhygienic means for the storage
of their waste compared to what is operating in the medium and low densities zones in the study area. Result
of the analysis also shows that the population enjoying private firm participation is comparatively smaller
than those disposing their waste in unauthorized places and is mostly found in medium and low density
zones. Other problems facing private firms that are managing waste in Ibadan South West are finance,
conveyance, charges among others.
Theoretical Standpoint for this study
The study adopted the New Public Management (NPM) theory propounded by Hood (1991). As a new
paradigm in public sector management, the New Public Management theory points to the failures and
inadequacies of public sector performance over time and the problems lying squarely in the nature and
processes of public sector activity and traditional public administration. The New Public Management
theory is the transition from traditional public administration theories to an arrangement that is workable,
practicable and result oriented. It places emphasis on efficiency, effectiveness, corporate governance,
technological innovation and democratization. New Public Management theory is a relentless effort in the
direction of greater cost reduction, transparency and accountability in resource allocation and performance
management through the quality of service.
Therefore the tenets of New Public Management theory are;
i. Explicit standards and measures of performance: Management by objectives (MBO) that is goals
and targets defined and measurable as indicators of success. Justification: Accountability means
clearly stated aims, efficiency requires “hard look” at objectives
ii. Shift to decentralization or disaggregation of units in the public sector: Disaggregate public sector
into corporatized units of activity, organized by products, with devolved budgets. Units dealing at
arm’s length with each other. Justification: Make units manageable, split provision and production,
use contracts or franchises inside as well as outside the public sector;
iii. Emphasis on private sector styles of management practice: Move away from traditional public
ethics to a more flexible pay, hiring rules etc. Justification: Need to apply “proven” private sector
management tools in the public sector;
iv. Paradigm shift to greater competition in the public sector: Move to contracting out/out sourcing
public sector tendering procedures and introduction of market disciplines and customer oriented

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public sector. Justification: Rivalry via competition as the key to lower costs and better standards.
(Hood, 1996).
The New Public Management theory is very critical to the study as it helps to explain the role of private
contractors in solid waste management in Anambra State. Solid waste management has emerged as one of
the greatest challenges facing state and local environmental protection agencies in Nigeria. The volume of
solid waste being generated continues to increase at a faster rate than the ability of the agencies to improve
on the financial and technical resources needed to parallel this growth (Ogweleke, 2009). As a result of this,
governments have had a rethink on this issue and have contracted the processes involved in solid waste
management to private sector organizations. It is believed that with the participation of private waste
contractors, the issue of solid waste collection, transportation, treatment, monitoring, recycling and disposal
will be adequately dealt with. Hence the emphasis on accountability, transparency, efficiency, outsourcing,
effectiveness and service delivery based on this theory enable us have the basis for examining the effect of
private contractors in solid waste management in Anambra State.
Consequently the following hypotheses were formulated for the study:
(i) Private waste contractors in Anambra State have not contributed significantly to solid waste
collection and disposal.
(ii) Private waste contractors in Anambra State have not contributed significantly to solid waste
recycling.
(iii) Private waste contractors in Anambra State have not contributed to public enlightenment on
good sanitary practices.
Research Methodology
This research was carried out in Anambra state, specifically in Awka, Onitsha and Nnewi metropolises.
These areas were selected because they constitute the busiest and urbanized areas in Anambra State, hence
characterized with the generation of large metric tonnes of solid waste. Survey research method was
adopted for the study. The sources of data for the study were mainly from the primary and secondary
sources.
The instruments used for gathering relevant data for the study are questionnaire and personal interview. A
40– item questionnaire with open-ended questions was designed for the study in accordance with the
research objectives, research questions and hypotheses. The questionnaire consisted of two sections; Part
A; demographic data of the respondents such as; gender, educational qualification and age bracket of the
respondents; while the part B consists of the core research questions. A structured 5 Likert-scale
questionnaire was designed based on; Strongly Agree (SA), Agree (A), Undecided (U), Disagreed (D) and
Strongly Disagree (SD). The questionnaire was designed to illicit information for the study. The researcher
also conducted interview on the staff of Anambra State Waste Management Agency, Anambra State
Ministry of Environment, LAGA International Limited and Africa Public Health Enterprise, as well as the
inhabitants of Awka, Nnewi and Onitsha metropolises. The data obtained from personal interview
significantly complemented the data from the questionnaire.
A sample size of 400 respondents was chosen for the study. Out of the four hundred (400) copies
questionnaires produced and administered, three hundred and eighty-six (389) were returned and found to
have been properly filled. The questionnaire return ratio was 97.25.
Simple random and purposive sampling techniques were used in the study. Test and re-test method was
used to establish the reliability of the instrument. Data collected from the field, were presented using
descriptive statistics such as tables, means, frequencies, standard deviation and simple percentage. The
hypotheses were tested using inferential statistics such as Regression analysis with the aid of statistical
Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20.
Model Specification:
The estimated regression model is given as:
Y = a + bx +Чi
Where:
Y = dependent variable

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X = independent variable
A = intercept
b = slope
Чi = Error term or stochastic variable
Hence the regression models for the study are;
Y (SWC&D) = a + X (PWCs) - - - - - - - - - - 1
Y (SWR) = a + X (PWCs) - - - - - - - - - - - - 2
Y (PE&GSP) = a + X (PWCs) - - - - - - - - - -3
* SWC&D = Solid Waste Collection and Disposal.
* SWR = Solid Waste Recycling.
* PEGSP = Public Enlightenment and Good Sanitary Practice.
* PWCs = Private Waste Contractors.
Analysis of Research Question
The hypotheses were tested using the Pearson’s correlation.
The responses of the sampled respondents are presented in table 1 below.
Table 1: Roles of Private waste contractors (PWC) in Solid Waste Management (SWM)
N = 389
S/N Items FX Mean Remark
(x)
1 Private waste contractors in Anambra State have helped to preserve the 1079 2.77 Disagreed
aesthetic beauty of the environment and ensure favourable living and
working conditions for man.
2 Private waste contractors have helped to avoid pollution by directly or 1250 3.21 Agreed
indirectly altering the physical biological and thermal properties of any
part of the environment

3 Private waste contractors have helped to avoid allowing refuse to 1315 3.38 Agreed
accumulate in excessive or dangerous amount or to create a condition
which is hazardous to public health and safety or welfare to animals
and plants
4 Private waste contractors have helped to reduce the incidence of 1295 3.33 Agreed
epidemics and diseases, which often results from failure or delay in
disposing wastes.
5 Private waste contractors have helped to reduce the calamitous effect 1338 3.44 Agreed
of un-cleared and untreated solid wastes on the urban landscape.
6 Private waste contractors have helped to stem the tide of complete 984 2.53 Disagreed
blockages of drainage channels by undisposed solid wastes
7 Private waste contractors have helped in remediating land where 1364 3.51 Agreed
contamination presents a significant risk of harm to health or the
environment

8 Private waste contractors have helped in reducing, re-using, recycling 895 2.30 Disagreed
and recovering waste and minimizing the generation of waste.
9 Private waste contractors have helped to ensure that people are aware 943 2.42 Disagreed
of the impact of waste on their health, wellbeing and the environment
10 Private waste contractors have helped to achieve integrated waste 1275 3.28 Agreed
management reporting and planning, and also ensure effective delivery
of waste services.
Source: Field Survey, 2015.

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Data from table 1 shows that six out of the ten listed items showed a mean score of 3.0 and above. Hence
the respondents agreed that, during the period under review, Private waste contractors have; helped to avoid
pollution by directly or indirectly altering the physical biological and thermal properties of any part of the
environment (3.21); helped to avoid allowing refuse to accumulate in excessive or dangerous amount or to
create a condition which is hazardous to public health and safety or welfare to animals and plants (3.38);
helped to reduce the incidence of epidemics and diseases, which often results from failure or delay in
disposing wastes (3.33); helped to reduce the calamitous effect of un-cleared and untreated solid wastes on
the urban landscape (3.44); helped in remediating land where contamination presents a significant risk of
harm to health or the environment (3.51) and helped to achieve integrated waste management reporting and
planning, and also ensure effective delivery of waste services (3.28).
On the contrary, four items in table 1 have mean scores below 3.0. This revealed that private waste
contractors in Anambra State have not helped; to preserve the aesthetic beauty of the environment and
ensure favourable living and working conditions for man (2.77); to stem the tide of complete blockages of
drainage channels by undisposed solid wastes (2.53); in reducing, re-using, recycling and recovering waste
and minimizing the generation of waste (2.30); to ensure that people are aware of the impact of waste on
their health, wellbeing and the environment (2.42).
Research Question 1: Have the private waste contractors contributed significantly to solid waste collection
and disposal in Anambra State?
The responses of the sampled respondents are presented in table 2 below.
Table 2 Solid Waste Collection and Disposal in Anambra State
N = 389
S/N Items FX Mean Remark
(x)
11 Private waste contractors in Anambra State have adequate 1040 2.67 Disagreed
compactors for solid waste collection in designated disposal
sites.
12 Private waste contractors in Anambra State have adequate 885 2.28 Disagreed
chain up vehicles to effectively convey solid waste to disposal
sites.
13 Solid wastes generated in Anambra State are promptly 869 2.23 Disagreed
collected by the private waste contractors.
14 Solid waste receptacles are promptly returned to designated 953 2.45 Disagreed
depot after disposal of wastes.
15 The private waste contractors have complemented the State 1229 3.16 Agreed
Government effort on solid waste management.
16 The private contractors handling solid waste in Anambra 1074 2.76 Disagreed
State have adequate equipment to achieve effective solid
waste management.
17 Offensive odours associated with solid wastes are treated by 1027 2.64 Disagreed
the private waste contractors before they are transported to
the disposal sites.

18 Solid waste receptacles are adequate in Awka, Onitsha and 902 2.32 Disagreed
Nnewi metropolises of Anambra State to cater for tonnes of
solid waste generated daily.
19 Private waste contractors have adequate manpower to 919 2.36 Disagreed
effectively convey waste to disposal sites.
20 The waste management agency in Anambra State has modern 1062 2.73 Disagreed
technologies for effective management of solid waste

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Source: Field Survey, 2015.

Data from table 2 shows that only one out of the ten listed items showed a mean score above 3.0. This
revealed that private waste contractors have complemented the State Government effort on solid waste
management. However, the remaining nine items have mean scores have means scores below 3.0. This
shows that private waste contractors in Anambra State does not have adequate; compactors for solid waste
collection in designated disposal sites (2.67); and chain up vehicles to effectively convey solid waste to
disposal sites. Solid wastes generated in Anambra State are not promptly collected by the private waste
contractors (2.23). Solid waste receptacles are not promptly returned to designated depot after disposal of
wastes (2.45). Private contractors handling solid waste in Anambra State do not have adequate equipment
to achieve effective solid waste management (2.76). Offensive odours associated with solid wastes are
treated by the private waste contractors before they are transported to the disposal sites (2.64). Solid waste
receptacles are adequate in Awka, Onitsha and Nnewi metropolises of Anambra State to cater for tonnes of
solid waste generated daily (2.32). Private waste contractors have adequate manpower to effectively convey
waste to disposal sites (2.36) and waste management agency in Anambra State does not modern
technologies for effective management of solid waste (2.73).
Research Question 2: Have the private waste contractors contributed significantly to solid waste recycling
in Anambra State?
The responses of the sampled respondents are presented in table 3 below.
Table 3 Solid Waste Recycling in Anambra State
N = 389
S/N Variable FX Mean Remark
(x)
21 The involvement of the private waste contractors in solid waste 968 2.49 Disagreed
management have improved the recycling of solid waste in Anambra
State.
22 Private waste contractors in Anambra State use composting, anaerobic 835 2.15 Disagreed
digestion, and microbial fuel cell to recycle solid waste in Anambra
State.
23 Private waste contractors and Anambra State Waste Management 1055 2.71 Disagreed
Agency often educate the public on how to recycle their solid waste.
24 Private waste contractors in Anambra State have recycling plants to 874 2.25 Disagreed
convert waste to wealth and minimize the tonnes of waste disposal.
25 Pyrolysis and waste recovery methods are used by Private waste 958 2.46 Disagreed
contractors in Anambra State
26 Private waste contractors manually sort solid wastes at collection 1401 3.60 Agreed
points before final disposal.
27 Private waste contractors have recycling plants for the recycling of 965 2.48 Disagreed
solid wastes to enhance economic gains and employment
opportunities.
28 Private waste contractors rely on scavengers to greatly assist them 1516 3.90 Agreed
recycle solid waste in Anambra State.
29 Private waste contractors in Anambra State often sensitize corporate 898 2.31 Disagreed
organizations and companies to recycle their commercial and industrial
waste.
30 The Private waste contractors in collaboration with the Ministry of 815 2.10 Disagreed
Environment organize seminars and conferences on solid waste
recycling in Anambra State.
Source: Field Survey, 2015.
Table 3 shows that 2 out of the 10 listed items have mean scores of 3.0 and above. This shows that the
respondents agreed that, during the period under review, private waste contractors manually sort solid

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wastes at collection points before final disposal (3.60); they also rely on scavengers to greatly assist them
to recycle solid waste in Anambra State. The remaining 8 items have mean scores less than 3.0. This shows
that; the involvement of the private waste contractors in solid waste management have not improved the
recycling of solid waste in Anambra State (2.49); private waste contractors in Anambra State do not use
composting, anaerobic digestion, and microbial fuel cell to recycle solid waste in Anambra State (2.15);
private waste contractors and Anambra State Waste Management Agency often do not educate the public
on how to recycle their solid waste (2.71); private waste contractors in Anambra State do not have recycling
plants to convert waste to wealth and minimize the tonnes of waste disposal (2.25); pyrolysis and waste
recovery methods are not used by private waste contractors in Anambra State (2.46); private waste
contractors do not have recycling plants for the recycling of solid wastes to enhance economic gains and
employment opportunities (2.48); private waste contractors in Anambra State do not often sensitize
corporate organizations and companies to recycle their commercial and industrial waste (2.31); and private
waste contractors do not collaborate with the Ministry of Environment to organize seminars and
conferences on solid waste recycling in Anambra State.
(i) Research Question 3: To what extent have private waste contractors contributed to public
enlightenment on good sanitary practices in Anambra State?
The responses of the sampled respondents are presented in table 4 below.
Table 4: The role of PWC in public enlightenment on good sanitary practices in Anambra State
N = 389
S/N Variable FX Mean Remark
(x)
31 The sanitary habit of the inhabitants in Awka, Onitsha and 1545 3.97 Agreed
Nnewi metropolises pose serious problem to solid waste
management in Anambra State.
32 Proper monitoring of solid waste disposal habit of the people is 1755 4.51 Agreed
instrumental to achieving quality service delivery in solid waste
management in Anambra State
33 Private waste contractor carryout public awareness 1013 2.60 Disagreed
programmes on the dangers of poor sanitary practice in Awka,
Onitsha and Nnewi metropolises of Anambra State.
34 Public awareness of the inhabitance of the people on 720 1.85 Disagreed
maintaining good sanitary practices have been significantly
increased by the private waste contractors.
35 Private waste contractor have helped to drastically curtail poor 942 2.42 Disagreed
sanitary habits of the public.
36 Poor sanitary habits of the inhabitants of Awka, Onitsha and 1805 4.64 Agreed
Nnewi are traceable to inadequate information on the
consequences of their actions.
37 Littering of residential areas, markets, motor parks and other 1537 3.95 Agreed
public places are mainly caused by the poor sanitation habit of
the people
38 Private waste contractors in Anambra State have provided the 885 2.28 Disagreed
public with relevant information to curtail indiscriminate refuse
dumps.
39 Private waste contractors monitor and report violators of 1184 3.04 Agreed
sanitation laws to the appropriate authorities.
40 The public enlightenment programmes of private waste 839 2.16 Disagreed
contractors in Anambra State have made the people to adopt
good sanitary practices.
Source: Field Survey, 2015.

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Table 4 shows that 5 out of the 10 listed items have mean scores of 3.0 and above. This shows that the
respondents agreed that, during the period under review, the sanitary habit of the inhabitants in Awka,
Onitsha and Nnewi metropolises pose serious problem to solid waste management in Anambra State (3.97);
proper monitoring of solid waste disposal habit of the people is instrumental to achieving quality service
delivery in solid waste management in Anambra State (4.51). poor sanitary habits of the inhabitants of
Awka, Onitsha and Nnewi are traceable to inadequate information on the consequences of their actions
(4.64); littering of residential areas, markets, motor parks and other public places are mainly caused by the
poor sanitation habit of the people (3.95); and private waste contractors monitor and report violators of
sanitation laws to the appropriate authorities (3.04).
The remaining 5 items have mean scores less than 3.0. This shows that private waste contractors do not
carry out public awareness programmes on the dangers of poor sanitary practice in Awka, Onitsha and
Nnewi metropolises of Anambra State (2.60); public awareness of the people on maintaining good sanitary
practices have not been significantly increased by the private waste contractors (1.85); private waste
contractor have not helped to drastically curtail poor sanitary habits of the public (2.42); private waste
contractors in Anambra State have not provided the public with relevant information to curtail
indiscriminate refuse dumps (2.28); the public enlightenment programmes of private waste contractors in
Anambra State have not propelled the people to adopt good sanitary practices (2.16).
Data Analysis
This section focuses on the test of three hypotheses formulated for the study. The hypotheses were tested
with the aid of regression analysis.
Test of Hypothesis One
(i) : Private waste contractors in Anambra State have not contributed significantly to solid
waste collection and disposal.
: Private waste contractors in Anambra State have contributed significantly to solid waste
collection and disposal.
This hypothesis was tested using the responses of respondents in tables 1 and 2 above. The result of the
analysis is presented in table 5 below.
Table 5: Test of Hypothesis One

Descriptive Statistics
Mean Std. Deviation N
Solid Waste Collection &
77.8000 46.76341 50
Disposal
Private Waste
76.3000 37.49136 50
Contractors

Correlations
Solid Waste Collection & Private Waste
Disposal Contractors
Solid Waste Collection &
1.000 .239
Disposal
Pearson Correlation
Private Waste
.239 1.000
Contractors
Solid Waste Collection &
. .047
Disposal
Sig. (1-tailed)
Private Waste
.047 .
Contractors
Solid Waste Collection &
N 50 50
Disposal

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Private Waste
50 50
Contractors

Variables Entered/Removeda
Model Variables Variables Method
Entered Removed
Private Waste
1 . Enter
Contractorsb
a. Dependent Variable: Solid Waste Collection &
Disposal
b. All requested variables entered.

Model Summary
Model R R Square Adjusted R Std. Error of
Square the Estimate
a
1 .239 .057 .038 45.87645
a. Predictors: (Constant), Private Waste Contractors
ANOVAa
Model Sum of Df Mean Square F Sig.
Squares
Regression 6130.882 1 6130.882 2.913 .094b
1 Residual 101023.118 48 2104.648
Total 107154.000 49
a. Dependent Variable: Solid Waste Collection & Disposal
b. Predictors: (Constant), Private Waste Contractors

Coefficientsa
Model Unstandardized Standardized T Sig.
Coefficients Coefficients
B Std. Error Beta
(Constant) 55.036 14.832 3.711 .001
1 Private Waste
.298 .175 .239 1.707 .094
Contractors
a. Dependent Variable: Solid Waste Collection & Disposal

From the analysis in table 5, the correlation coefficient (r) was .239. It implies that there is positive weak
relationship between private waste contractors and solid waste collection and disposal. The coefficient of
determination (r2) was .038 which implies that about 03.8% variations in solid waste collection and disposal
could only be explained by private waste contractors. The regression equation is Y = 55.036 + .298. The
table also reveals that probability value of (0.09) is greater than the alpha value (0.05) implying that the
null hypothesis is upheld that private waste contractors in Anambra State have not contributed significantly
to solid waste collection and disposal.

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Test of Hypothesis Two

(i) : Private waste contractors in Anambra State have not contributed significantly to solid
waste recycling.
: Private waste contractors in Anambra State have contributed significantly to solid waste
recycling.
This hypothesis was tested using the responses of respondents in tables 1 and 3 above. The result of the
analysis is presented in table 6 below.
Table 6: Test of Hypothesis Two
Descriptive Statistics
Mean Std. Deviation N
Solid Waste Recycling 77.8000 48.88387 50
Private Waste
76.3000 37.49136 50
Contractors

Correlations
Solid Waste Private Waste
Recycling Contractors
Solid Waste Recycling 1.000 -.239
Pearson Correlation Private Waste
-.239 1.000
Contractors
Solid Waste Recycling . .047
Sig. (1-tailed) Private Waste
.047 .
Contractors
Solid Waste Recycling 50 50
N Private Waste
50 50
Contractors

Variables Entered/Removeda
Model Variables Variables Method
Entered Removed
Private Waste
1 . Enter
Contractorsb
a. Dependent Variable: Solid Waste Recycling
b. All requested variables entered.

Model Summary
Model R R Square Adjusted R Std. Error of
Square the Estimate
a
1 .239 .057 .038 47.95585
a. Predictors: (Constant), Private Waste Contractors
ANOVAa
Model Sum of Df Mean Square F Sig.
Squares
Regression 6703.369 1 6703.369 2.915 .094b
1 Residual 110388.631 48 2299.763
Total 117092.000 49
a. Dependent Variable: Solid Waste Recycling

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b. Predictors: (Constant), Private Waste Contractors

Coefficientsa
Model Unstandardized Standardized T Sig.
Coefficients Coefficients
B Std. Error Beta
(Constant) 101.604 15.504 6.553 .000
1 Private Waste
-.312 .183 -.239 -1.707 .094
Contractors
a. Dependent Variable: Solid Waste Recycling

From the analysis in table 6, the correlation coefficient (r) was -.239. It implies that there is a negative
relationship between private waste contractors and solid waste recycling. The coefficient of determination
(r2) was .038 which implies that about 03.8% variations in solid waste collection and disposal could only
be explained by private waste contractors. The regression equation is Y = 101.604 + -.312. The table also
reveals that probability value of (0.09) is greater than the alpha value (0.05) implying that the null
hypothesis is upheld that private waste contractors in Anambra State have contributed significantly to solid
waste recycling.
Test of Hypothesis Three
(i) Private waste contractors in Anambra State have not contributed to public enlightenment on
good sanitary practices.
: Private waste contractors in Anambra State have contributed to public enlightenment on good sanitary
practices.
This hypothesis was tested using the responses of respondents in tables 1 and 4 above. The result of the
analysis is presented in table 7 below.
Table 7 Test of Hypothesis Three
Descriptive Statistics
Mean Std. Deviation N
Public Enlightenment on
79.0000 60.86921 50
Good Sanitary practice
Private Waste
76.3000 37.49136 50
Contractors

Correlations
Public Enlightenment on Private Waste
Good Sanitary practice Contractors
Public Enlightenment on
1.000 .186
Good Sanitary practice
Pearson Correlation
Private Waste
.186 1.000
Contractors
Public Enlightenment on
. .098
Good Sanitary practice
Sig. (1-tailed)
Private Waste
.098 .
Contractors
Public Enlightenment on
50 50
Good Sanitary practice
N
Private Waste
50 50
Contractors

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Variables Entered/Removeda
Model Variables Variables Method
Entered Removed
Private Waste
1 . Enter
Contractorsb
a. Dependent Variable: Public Enlightenment on
Good Sanitary practice
b. All requested variables entered.
Model Summary
Model R R Square Adjusted R Std. Error of
Square the Estimate
a
1 .186 .035 .015 60.42564
a. Predictors: (Constant), Private Waste Contractors

ANOVAa
Model Sum of Df Mean Square F Sig.
Squares
Regression 6287.612 1 6287.612 1.722 .196b
1 Residual 175260.388 48 3651.258
Total 181548.000 49
a. Dependent Variable: Public Enlightenment on Good Sanitary practice
b. Predictors: (Constant), Private Waste Contractors

Coefficientsa
Model Unstandardized Standardized T Sig.
Coefficients Coefficients
B Std. Error Beta
(Constant) 55.946 19.536 2.864 .006
1 Private Waste
.302 .230 .186 1.312 .196
Contractors
a. Dependent Variable: Public Enlightenment on Good Sanitary practice

From the analysis in table 7, the correlation coefficient (r) was .186. It implies that there is a low and
negligible relationship between private waste contractors and public enlightenment on good sanitary
practice. The coefficient of determination (r2) was .015 which implies that about 0.15% variations in solid
waste collection and disposal could only be explained by private waste contractors. The regression equation
is Y = 55.946 + .302. The table also reveals that probability value of (0.19) is greater than the alpha value
(0.05) implying that the null hypothesis is upheld that private waste contractors in Anambra State have
contributed to public enlightenment on good sanitary practices.
Summary of Findings
The summary of the findings of the study are that;
i. Private waste contractors in Anambra State did not significantly contribute to solid waste collection
and disposal (Y = 55.036 + .298, 0.09 > 0.05). Approximately 4 million tonnes of municipal solid
waste (MSW) is generated annually in the cities and yet there are not enough receptacles provided
to effectively cover the state. Even those receptacles that were strategically positioned in the cities
by waste management organizations for waste collection are most times not promptly evacuated.
ii. Private waste contractors in Anambra State did not significantly contribute to solid waste recycling
(Y = 101.604 + -.312, 0.09 > 0.05). This is because private waste contractors in Anambra State did

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not have waste recycling plants for achieving solid waste minimization and converting wastes to
wealth.
Private waste contractors in Anambra State did not significantly contribute to public enlightenment on good
sanitary practices (Y = 55.946 + .302, 0.19 > 0.05). This result is that the populace are commonly exposed
to serious health challenges. Hence the insensitivity of the populace to healthy sanitary practices is a major
issue in municipal waste disposal.
Conclusion
Based on the findings, the study has demonstrated that presently, the private sector participation in solid
waste management did not significantly address the poor state of solid waste management in Anambra
State. Inadequate finance and technical commitment adversely affected the participation of private waste
contractors in this regard. Hence strategies to improve solid waste management in Anambra State must take
into consideration these identified deficiencies with a view to achieve effective solid waste management.
Recommendations
Based on the findings, the following recommendations are made;
i. Anambra State Government should thoroughly review its existing contractual agreement with
private waste contractors handling solid waste collection and disposal in the urban areas, to ensure
that those without adequate finance, manpower, and appropriate technologies are screened out, in
order to appoint private waste contractors that can effectively and efficiently assist the State waste
management agencies in solid waste management.
ii. The State Government and private waste contractors should establish waste recycling plants which
will adequately minimize the tonnes of solid waste dumps at disposal sites. The establishment of
these plants will not only achieve solid waste minimization, but will also provide employment
opportunities and enhance wealth creation.
iii. Private waste contractors should complement the State Government effort in the area of public
enlightenment programmes on healthy sanitary habits. Private waste contractors should also
monitor the waste disposal habits of the populace and report violators of sanitation laws to the
sanitation enforcement agency.

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