Great UNICEF results in Ivory Coast and CAR

How to build new schools with recycled plastic was demonstrated once again by the UNICEF project Plastic Bricks in Ivory Coast last year. And in a district in the Central African Republic (CAR), the approach to tackling malnutrition was taken further with better screening and education. Both UNICEF projects have been supported by Van den Bosch since 2019 and 2022, respectively.

With a view to the waste problem and shortage of schools in West Africa's Ivory Coast, UNICEF and partners launched an innovative programme that recycles plastic into building blocks for schoolrooms. So far, this has built 284 schoolrooms, recycling over 2,000 tonnes of plastic. Besides the new schoolrooms, in which 14,200 children are now taught, another 91 are under construction.

Waste recycling

Besides that, 185 vulnerable women were trained in waste recycling and entrepreneurship. Research projects to make classrooms more weatherproof have also been initiated and multiple uses for the recycled plastic waste are being sought. This means, for example, prototypes such as health centres, but also school desks and latrines.

Tackling malnutrition

Another UNICEF project to which Van den Bosch is contributing is tackling malnutrition in the Sangha-Mbaéré health district in the Central African Republic (CAR). Armed conflicts, fuel shortages and periods of drought and flooding have put severe pressure on access to food.

Results

UNICEF aims to address malnutrition in this region by boosting the capacity of health workers and training them in the promotion of proper nutrition. In the past year, this yielded the following results:

Information on malnutrition and the importance of proper nutrition supplied to > 19,000 households
For this purpose, 270 new workers were trained
Screening of 29,000 children for acute malnutrition
Of these, 2,800 children were admitted for treatment
This brings the number of children treated in 2022 to 55,000

The partnership with UNICEF is part of our Sustainability programme. Read more about our vision and achievements. Want to know more about Plastic Bricks or the nutrition programme? Go to www.unicef.nl.