Andrea Mongia

Description

Greentsika is an innovative cleantech company based in Madagascar, specializing in at-home waste collection. Through a cloud-based application, a membership card, and real-time GPS tracking, it offers a subscription-based collection service tailored to the needs of households and businesses. Greentsika promotes digital payment methods and ensures efficient tracking for sustainable waste management.

Context

Greentsika addresses critical social and organizational needs related to waste management in Madagascar, particularly in the city of Toliara. This region is experiencing rapid urbanization, accompanied by a lack of structured public services for waste collection. This has led to urban cleanliness challenges, with illegal waste dumps degrading the environment and increasing health risks for local populations. Traditional solutions often fall short, leaving many households and businesses struggling to properly dispose of their waste.

Greentsika offers an innovative at-home waste collection solution tailored to local realities. Through its subscription-based service, it provides over 1,300 subscribed households—representing more than 10,000 people—with regular and reliable waste collection. With 500 pickups per day, Greentsika collects between 2 to 4 tons of waste daily, significantly contributing to improved urban cleanliness and quality of life in Toliara.

On an organizational level, Greentsika leverages new technologies to optimize its service. By using a cloud-based application and real-time GPS tracking, it ensures precise monitoring of collections and subscriptions, guaranteeing complete transparency. Households are equipped with a membership card that facilitates payment tracking and the management of collection schedules. On the back-end, these tools enable efficient management of accounting, human resources, and administration.

The solution also addresses the need for digital financial transactions in a region where access to formal banking services is limited. Sixty percent of Greentsika’s subscribers use Mobile Money or electronic payment solutions to pay for their subscriptions, reducing cash handling and associated risks for waste collectors.

Furthermore, Greentsika plays a key role in raising awareness about sustainable waste management, a critical issue for Toliara, a coastal city particularly vulnerable to environmental impacts. By offering an accessible and reliable service, Greentsika helps reduce illegal waste dumping and promotes more responsible waste disposal practices, contributing to a healthier and more sustainable living environment.

This initiative therefore meets an urgent need for the structuring and modernization of waste management while improving the daily lives of thousands of citizens. Greentsika’s positive impact is reflected in a cleaner city and better waste management through technological innovation and the engagement of local communities.

Technical details & Operations

The Greentsika solution is based on an at-home waste collection model, combining modern technologies with methods adapted to the local context to ensure a reliable and efficient service. Here’s how this solution works in practice:

  1. Flexible subscription service: Greentsika offers a subscription system for households and businesses, allowing them to customize the frequency of collections according to their specific needs. Subscribers can choose the number of weekly pickups and the volume of waste to be collected. This model provides clients with great flexibility, offering a service tailored to their constraints.
  2. Use of membership cards: Each subscriber receives a membership card equipped with a unique QR code, which collectors use to verify payment status during each visit. This ensures that only households with up-to-date subscriptions benefit from the service, guaranteeing transparent and secure payment management. The card also facilitates tracking the frequency of collections for each subscriber.
  3. Cloud application: Greentsika relies on a cloud-based application to centralize all information about subscribers, completed collections, and accounting and administrative data. The application allows real-time tracking of waste collectors’ routes. This optimizes route planning and enhances transparency for subscribers, who can know exactly when their waste was collected.
  4. Waste collection and transportation: Greentsika’s teams use specially adapted cycle-trailers for waste collection, making it easier to transport waste across Toliara. Each day, the teams perform around 500 pickups, collecting between 2 to 4 tons of waste. The waste is then transported to dumpsters, where it is stored before being processed for final treatment, helping to reduce illegal dumping and improve waste management in the city.
  5. Digital payment systems: To reduce cash transactions and encourage digital payments, Greentsika uses Mobile Money and other electronic payment solutions. Sixty percent of subscribers use these methods to pay for their subscriptions, simplifying the payment process and minimizing the risks associated with handling cash by waste collectors.
  6. Back-office tracking and management: Beyond waste collection, Greentsika’s cloud application integrates administrative, accounting, and human resource management modules. This allows for efficient employee management, collection traceability, and optimization of internal processes, ensuring high-quality service for subscribers.
  7. Community awareness and engagement: Greentsika also implements awareness campaigns about waste management and environmental protection. These initiatives aim to encourage responsible behavior and involve local communities in preserving their living environment.

Through this combination of modern technologies, adapted methods, and a needs-focused approach, Greentsika delivers a reliable and effective waste collection service, contributing to urban cleanliness and sustainable waste management in Toliara.

Deployment & Impact

The waste collection solution implemented by Greentsika has had a significant impact on waste management and the improvement of quality of life in Toliara. Here are the main outcomes of the project and its deployment:

  1. Improved waste management: Since its launch, Greentsika has enabled the daily collection of 2 to 4 tons of waste, amounting to approximately 500 pickups per day. This more structured waste management system has significantly reduced illegal dumping in the city’s neighborhoods, enhancing cleanliness and hygiene in the serviced areas. By mitigating the issues caused by uncollected garbage, the project has also helped reduce the risk of diseases related to unsanitary conditions, such as infections and epidemics.
  2. Expansion of service coverage: With over 1,300 households subscribed, benefiting more than 10,000 people, Greentsika has effectively and inclusively deployed its service. By targeting both households and local businesses, the solution addresses the diverse waste management needs of the population while offering a personalized service based on the desired collection frequency.
  3. Facilitation of payments: One of Greentsika’s innovative aspects is its use of digital payment solutions, such as Mobile Money, used by 60% of subscribers. This approach has simplified subscription management and reduced reliance on cash, enhancing transaction security for subscribers and improving payment transparency. This has allowed many households, even those in remote areas, to access professional and regular waste collection services.
  4. Awareness of waste management: Greentsika goes beyond waste collection by engaging in public awareness campaigns on responsible waste management. By promoting behavior change and strengthening environmental consciousness among Toliara’s residents, these initiatives amplify the project’s long-term impact, fostering a more engaged and responsible community.
  5. Impact on the local economy: Greentsika has created both direct and indirect jobs in Toliara, particularly for collection and management teams, thereby contributing to the local economy. The project also supports the city’s efforts in sustainable development and environmental protection by offering a practical solution to the challenges posed by rapid urbanization.
  6. Gradual deployment and adaptability: The project was rolled out progressively to adapt to the specific needs of each neighborhood in Toliara. By combining subscriber feedback with data analysis from the cloud application, Greentsika has been able to adjust its collection routes and improve operational efficiency. This gradual deployment has also allowed the service to meet the population’s growing needs while optimizing available resources.

Through these various efforts, Greentsika has demonstrated a tangible and lasting impact on waste management in Toliara, providing a practical solution to environmental challenges while contributing to the well-being of the population.