To create awareness on pet bottle management, JICA Alumni Association of Bhutan (JAAB) trained 25 women on producing household utility and decoration items from pet bottles.

The three-day training ended yesterday.

JAAB’s training coordinator Pema Gyelpo said the training would help create awareness, impart ideas, and to develop skills. “The programme was targeted at housewives and young women to realise their potential in recycling pet waste.”

The programme also aims to create awareness on waste management and to generate income through waste management.

He said that after the training, women would help lead their community to reduce pet bottle wastes.

Plastics had become an essential part of our lives and its disposal causes environmental problems, he said. “Pet bottles had been increasing especially through food items such as fizzy drinks and mineral water bottles, among others.”

A 31-year-old Tshewang Lhamo is one of the participants living in Paro. “I had always been interested in making household utility out of pet bottles but did not know how to experiment,” she said.

She said that utilities used in bedroom, kitchen and toilet such as soap case, toothbrush holder, mobile hanger, pencil holder, spoon holder, and funnel were made during the training.

JAAB is an independent organisation formed by participants of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) training programmes in the country.

Rinchen Zangmo