By Hoem Seiha
The Economics today
Looking at one corner of hundreds of informal economic activities, one will see scavengers so-called ‘etjai’ pickers roaming around the city, sometimes with their siblings in tow, in seek of recyclable garbage to sell to make their living. Pulling two-wheel carts and casting eyes on every heap of garbage, these street children are hunting for recyclable materials put aside as unwanted garbage in front of each house.
Ni Nann, 16, hunting for recyclable materials in some corners of Phnom Penh city is among others of thousand ‘etjai’ pickers. Perching on a small, short stool, looking very pathetic, with hopeless eyes, he described about his life as an ‘etjai’ picker to Economics Today that he would collect recyclable trash anywhere he could go, sometimes two to three kilometers length.
When asked about what amount he earns per day, he said pitifully, making an atmosphere sounds pathetical, ‘I earn about 5000 riels per day,’ and adding that he on some days earns nothing, not even a single riel. However, he informed that his mother could earn about 10000 riels, with sometimes as low as 5000 riels. He collects recyclable trash for full day, starting from 6 in the morning until 5 o’clock in the evening with 2 hours for lunchtime.
There are ‘etjai’ pickers everywhere in Cambodia, especially Phnom Penh city, ranging from very young children to old persons. They hunt for recyclable garbage as does Nann do everyday. Because this job requires no skills or money to do with it, all poor, unfortunate young children can start the job in order to earn for their living and for their school fees as an addition to their parents.
‘I am now also studying,’ Nann spoke with a low, rusty voice, adding that he is a grade-7 student. ‘When I have free time from learning,’ Nann continued, ‘I pull my card along with my little brother and hunt for piles of trash to collect.’ Because his parents cannot support him in his study due to too many children within the family, he has to scavenge through heaps of garbage so as to support himself.
A proverb has always been spoken, ‘One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.’ Generally people dispose of their waste materials because these unwanted matter is no longer useful for them. In fact some of these waste materials are recyclable or reusable, so recycling traders demand for these materials, buy them from the ‘etjai’ pickers, and then export to recycling factories in the neighboring country, Vietnam or Thailand. These traders make it possible for thousands of ‘etjai’ pickers to survive, and to some degree, to be able to raise their family by scavenging trough garbage, reducing poverty. These scavengers therefore play a major role for recycling industries.
According to World Bank, 2% of population of the third world countries scavenges garbage to sustain their lives. Martin Medina at World Institute for Development Economics Research of the United Nations University (UNU-WIDER) indicate that at least 15 million scavengers worldwide make a living by recovering materials from waste for recycling. In Phnom Penh, there is not any concrete statistics about the total number of ‘etjai’ pickers, but according to frequently cited figures, one of which by Canodia, the number of scavengers solely in Steng Meanchey municipal dump site (the only garbage dumpsite covering 100 acres in Phnom Penh) is roughly 2,000, about 600 of whom are children in 2009.
There are several advantages concerning the existence of ‘etjai’ pickers and recycling industries. One advantage, according to Martin Medina, is that this system is good for environment. Since recycling traders demand for recyclables to sell to recycling factories, ‘etjai’ pickers have market for their recyclable scavenged trash and collect it as a daily basis. They collect all recyclables by scavenging piles of garbage and garbage dump sites. By doing so, according to Martin Medina, they contribute to reducing spaces needed for landfill, save natural resources by recycling waste materials for later uses without mining for virgin resources which are now constraints, and reduce emissions of greenhouse gases by recycling inorganic and organic materials. This can contribute to fighting against global climate change.
Another advantage is a plus to improving economy for disadvantaged, unemployed people. In Phnom Penh, many migrants and poor people survive on scavenging. This alleviates poverty and reduces social crime committed when people lack of job. What will these poor people do when they are in desperate hunger? Stealing, pocket-picking, or even robbery will perhaps occur. In addition, recycling traders immensely benefit from the system, while informally employing many scavengers.
Nevertheless, disadvantages appear among them, particularly ‘etjai’ pickers. Scavenging through piles of garbage adversely affects their health. Martin Medina supports that exposing to rotten smell of liquid waste, harmful bacteria or infectious viruses containing within those garbage, and sometimes eating discarded food usually mixed together with waste for which they are hunting degenerates their lifespan or even causes premature death due to various health problems.
Moreover, ‘etjai’ pickers face exploitation in term of labor. Scavenging to sustain daily living is socially deemed as a demeaning job. As a consequence, ‘ejai’ pickers are easily exploited labouredly. Martin Medina demonstrates that because recycling industries cannot purchase collected materials directly from ‘ejai’ pickers, traders instead purchase the materials collected by ‘etjai’ pickers and then sell them to the industries. By this means, these traders profits large amount, while ‘ejai’ pickers are poorly paid.
According to Sea Globe, Steng Meanchey dumpsite in Phnom Penh is now closed and scavenging though garbage there in seek of recyclables is disallowed, because it has been described as an eyesore that was a potent symbol of the ‘third world’ inequity to the city by the fact that passers-by and photographers specially from other countries encounter such ‘eyesore’ view. The closure will, therefore, economically affect those working at the dumpsite for a regular basis and perhaps recycling traders.
Because it is hazardous for ‘ejai’ pickers to scavenge through heaps of garbage usually mixed together with decomposed waste, important activities should be considered. Sorting waste materials at home, a move recommended by ‘Going Green’ policy of Embassy of the United States of America, Phnom Penh, is advantageous to ‘ejai’ pickers in term of shaving time for searching recyclables, reducing direct contact with harmful waste, and improving economy. This should be contributed by every citizen who consumes and uses materials and then disposes of them. Once these materials are no longer in use, they should sort them by category such as plastic, metal, or paper and unrecyclable waste should be sorted aside so that ‘etjai’ pickers do not need to go to the dumpsite in order to scavenge by tearing up waste bags or digging through piles of garbage, which makes ‘etjai’ pickers vulnerable to health problems and wastes time for them.
Another important move to be made is to promote children who are working as scavengers to sustain their lives, because a number of scavengers are children under the age of labor force. In term of labor laws, United Nations and International Labour Organization consider child labor in any forms exploitative.
However, it is impossible for law institutions to enforce the law with recycling industries since scavengers are informal workers out of law constitution’s control. Children should have opportunities to get formal education because educated children can develop the world. Room to Read believes that ‘World Change Starts with Educated Children’.
