In Mali, donkeys help with the fight against waste

In Mali, donkeys help with the fight against waste

Bamako, Mali
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In the Malian capital of Bamako, donkey carts driven by young men like 19-year-old Arouna Diabate play a vital role battling the fast-growing city's waste problem.

. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago
Arouna Diabate drives his cart.

Every morning before dawn, Diabate hitches his donkey to a cart and sets off on his rounds, going door-to-door to collect household garbage which he delivers to a local waste transfer station for a monthly salary of around $35.

"I won't be picking up trash with a donkey cart for the rest of my life, but for now people appreciate us because we help clean up the homes of Bamako," Diabate said.

. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago
Waste pickers stand in line as they prepare to unload at a local waste transfer station.

Mali is one of the poorest countries in the world and the authorities struggle to provide adequate public services in the capital. Bamako's population more than quadrupled from the mid-1970s to 1.8 million as of 2009, according to census data.

The population boom has made the issue of waste disposal in Bamako more acute, requiring Diabate's boss, Moustapha Diarra, to deploy eight donkey carts in his district instead of the two he managed a decade ago.

. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago
Wooden beds are displayed next to a dump in Bamako.

The system is overburdened due to a proliferation of informal dumps and the authorities' failure to remove waste from the local transfer stations, Diarra said.

"The garbage piles up so much that you find it in the roads and when it rains, the water stagnates," he said. "Without sanitation, you can't have good health."

Writing by Alessandra Prentice

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Slideshow

Salif Diabate, 18, poses before going for a walk with his friends.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

Salif Diabate, 18, poses before going for a walk with his friends.

Djibril Diabate (right), 16, who collects garbage using a donkey, takes off his work clothes.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

Djibril Diabate (right), 16, who collects garbage using a donkey, takes off his work clothes.

Arouna Diabate ties his shoelace as he prepares for a walk with his brothers and friends.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

Arouna Diabate ties his shoelace as he prepares for a walk with his brothers and friends.

Souleymane Doumbia, 27, who collects waste, said: "I like this job because it allows me to buy clothes and put some money aside."
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

Souleymane Doumbia, 27, who collects waste, said: "I like this job because it allows me to buy clothes and put some money aside."

Arouna Diabate smokes as he sits at a donkey pasture.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

Arouna Diabate smokes as he sits at a donkey pasture.

(Left to right) Dramane Diallo, 19, Djibril Diabate and Amadou Keita, 21, sit at a donkey pasture.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

(Left to right) Dramane Diallo, 19, Djibril Diabate and Amadou Keita, 21, sit at a donkey pasture.

Donkeys that are used to collect garbage, interact at a pasture.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

Donkeys that are used to collect garbage, interact at a pasture.

Djibril Diabate, 16, collects garbage.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

Djibril Diabate, 16, collects garbage.

People search at a dump.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

People search at a dump.

Waste pickers prepare to unload garbage at a waste transfer station.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

Waste pickers prepare to unload garbage at a waste transfer station.

A waste picker unloads garbage.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

A waste picker unloads garbage.

A man collects garbage using a donkey.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

A man collects garbage using a donkey.

A man walks in a street.
. Bamako, Mali. Reuters/Luc Gnago

A man walks in a street.

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