Bamako, Mali: Biomedical Waste Management

Bamako has grown rapidly over the past 30 years and is now home to over 30% of the Mali population – over a million people. More than half of the city residents are under 20 years old. The City of Bamako enlisted Economic Youth Groups to assist with solid waste collection at the same time that a revised health policy led to the establishment of new community level health clinics (increasing the amount of biomedical waste being generated). The need for a policy to ensure the correct treatment and safe handling of biomedical waste became apparent, as the city of Bamako had no designated solid waste dump and biomedical waste was handled as ordinary domestic waste. A city consultation raised awareness about contamination risks for citizens and the need for effective management of biomedical waste.

As a result of the UMP City Consultation, a pilot project has been established with the participation of four health care centres and the municipality of Commune One in Bamako for effective biomedical waste management. This includes training modules on biomedical waste management and the provision of protective clothing, use of a vehicle, special containers and an incinerator for daily waste collection and disposal and complete documentation of the process for replication in other areas.

Results
• Safe and effective biomedical waste disposal through daily collection and incineration of waste from four health centres in the area
• Changes in the national environmental legislative framework to reflect biomedical waste issues
• Modification of solid and liquid waste management laws to include biomedical waste management 
• Decrees concerning institutional roles and responsibilities in the management of biomedical waste drafted for adoption in 2001

Follow up
Building on the experience from the 2-year city consultation, a proposal to effectively manage biomedical waste in the two largest hospitals in Bamako is being drafted. Biomedical waste collection will be extended to the district level by request of the district mayor, and training modules will be extended to reach decision makers, health centre staff and waste collectors.

Regional Offices & Activities