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In demonstration of its belief in a multi-pronged effort to encourage hands-on involvement by past students with their alma mater, Kings College Class of 1988 has handed over a 15 million naira worth of redesigned and refurbished waste management facility to the school.
The project undertaken and funded by the 1988 set in commemoration of their 30th anniversary’s graduation from Kings College Lagos is the first step in the many programmes lined up to give the school the support it deserves.
Emeka Oragwu, a member of the Class of 1988 Organising Committee said the overriding sentiment about the donation was that the anniversary provided a suitable opportunity for the year group to express its gratitude to the school.
According to him, “Our successes in life are thanks to the solid intellectual and social foundation we received at Kings College, “We also learnt that debts are always repaid what better way to express our thanks than by giving something back to the school”.
Mohammed Shaibu, member Organising Committee for the Class of 1988’s anniversary celebration while explaining the rational of the waste management facility said they notice the shortcomings of the current school’s waste disposal system, designed for a far smaller school population.
“The increase in numbers of student population, as is the case with the demand on public services generally in Nigeria, is largely beyond the control of the school body. Unsurprisingly, the school has struggled to accommodate the additional pressure on facilities and resources”, he said.
Prompted by the scale and urgency of the situation, the Class of 1988 decided to not only develop a solution for the waste management challenge, one that would not only remove the health hazard but would also leave a lasting, practical legacy.
Shaibu said the project will among other things facilitate efficient collection and removal of waste; implementation of an operational system for daily waste management across the site.
To him, the project will also ensure the development of a waste classification system, promoting ecological and environmental awareness; and the development of a waste management awareness training programme, to embed a new culture of waste management on the Kings College site.
“We didn’t merely wish to bequeath the physical infrastructure to the school; we wanted to put in place the makings of a new culture, one that encouraged the long-term sustainability of the project.”
“Through this, not only would the school take ownership of the solution; it could also set an example, championing the positive outcomes of long-term planning”, Shaibu remarked.
The project plan and the design for the new waste disposal site were, in their entirety, developed pro-bono by the organising committee. The costs were underwritten by direct contributions solicited from the Class of 1988, and supported by corporate contributions in kind.
Emphasis was placed on sustainability. One innovative feature of the project was the installation of an anaerobic digester, capable of converting organic waste to methane gas. “There is the potential to derive value from waste,” Oragwu noted. “The gas can be used in the school kitchens, thus reducing operational costs and contributing to the upkeep and maintenance of the system” When fully operational, the anaerobic digester is expected to reduce the site’s gas costs by up to 20%.
Similarly, the project places environmental awareness to the fore. The classification and environmental awareness stages of the project are explicitly directed towards extracting value from the school’s waste.
KELECHI EWUZIE
