The Mayor of Accra, Hon. Elizabeth Kwatsoe Tawiah Sackey, has lauded the OR Foundation for its dedication to empowering women, particularly female head porters, known as "kayayei," through innovative skills training programs aimed at transforming textile waste into valuable products.

According to her the Foundation's efforts align with the Accra Metropolitan Assembly's (AMA) objective to improve sanitation in the city and uplift marginalized communities through capacity-building initiatives as well as skills development.

The Mayor lauded the OR Foundation when she paid a working visit to their office and production site, in Accra. 

"The OR Foundation is making a significant impact in the lives of these women by providing them with essential skills that can empower them economically and socially as well as improving sanitation. This is exactly the kind of intervention we need in Accra to support vulnerable populations and ensure sustainable development," she stated.

She expressed concerns over the low quality of second-hand clothes brought to Ghana stressing developing countries like Ghana deserve good quality and wearable clothing," she said. 

"There isn't efficient regulation of what is shipped to us...The traders have no choice but to throw the waste garments away, which adds to the overflowing landfill sites... We must all support this campaign and sign the petition to compel these countries to stop importing unwearable clothing to Ghana," she added.  

During the tour of the production hub, the Mayor observed the various training programmes offered by the OR Foundation, including tailoring, fashion design, and other vocational skills.

 She interacted with some of the trainees, many of whom expressed their gratitude to the foundation for the opportunity to gain practical skills that would enable them to build better lives for themselves and their families.

"We will continue to work closely with organizations like the OR Foundation to ensure that our collective efforts contribute to the overall development of Accra. These women deserve every opportunity to succeed, and we will do everything in our power to help them," Hon. Sackey noted. 

Branson Skinner, Co-Founder, of the OR Foundation, touched on the ongoing efforts to manage textile waste in Accra and explained that the Foundation had put a truck back into service to collect tons of textile waste daily from markets.

“Right now, we are paired with one truck, working alongside the AMA to fill it with textile waste and prevent it from reaching the lagoon,” he said. 

He highlighted the broader goals of the initiative, stating that not only are they transporting the waste to a dump site, but they aim to eventually transform it into something of new value. 

Skinner emphasized the Foundation's mission to clean up waste already present in the lagoon and on beach shores, which could significantly impact the environment.

"We can clean the water, make it swimmable, and healthier for the fish. Even a small amount of pollution can have severe consequences, affecting the fish and children who swim in the area," he said.

Skinner elaborated on the OR Foundation's work at its Material Research and Development Centre located behind Kantamanto Market, near Galloway Metal Market adding that the centre focuses on research, waste management solutions, and developing products from textile waste. 

He stated that the facility plays a crucial role as a point of intervention to stop waste from the market ending up in the Korle Lagoon.

He disclosed that the Foundation employs 55 full-time staff and has a training program that supports approximately 200 individuals adding that about 85 people were part of the beach clean-up and textile collection teams.