Sustainable Manufacturing and Environmental Pollution Programme

Advancing Inclusive Cleaner Production in the Nairobi Rivers Basin: Where Cleaner Production Meets Inclusion, Transforming Work and Safety

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The Kenya National Cleaner Production Centre (KNCPC), in partnership with Fintech Frontiers and Kanku Kenya Ltd, is supporting 26 businesses operating along the Nairobi Rivers Basin, with implementing interventions that reduce industrial pollution and strengthen sustainable manufacturing. KNCPC’s work shows that protecting the environment and empowering people are not separate goals—they are part of the […]

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Made in Bangladesh: How SMEP Projects are Powering Local Enterprise

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“Anything that is possible in the world, is also possible here, in Bangladesh.” Aniruddha Kumar Roy, Managing Director of Leather Industries of Bangladesh Limited An enthusiastic footwear factory owner summed up the spirit and overarching message of a recent SMEP trip to Bangladesh. His confidence was palpable, reflecting not only his personal ambition and drive, but it also spoke to the wider attitude of an industrious and

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Innovative Water Recycling Project Tackles Bangladesh’s Textile Industry Pollution

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A SMEP-funded pilot project in Bangladesh is combining wastewater treatment technology with an innovative financing model to address one of the textile industry’s most pressing environmental challenges: water pollution. A short technical webinar was hosted earlier in February 2026 by the project team to present pilot outcomes to industry stakeholders.  The Technical Breakthrough The project, led by Solidaridad Network Asia and QStone Capital BV, has deployed a modular 5m3/hr pilot plant, designed by Lenntech Water Solutions (the project’s Technical Solution,

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The Green Tannery Initiative: Towards positioning Ethiopia’s leather sector in the global arena

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The SMEP-funded project, the Green Tannery Initiative, has demonstrated that Ethiopia’s leather industry can convert its solid waste into high-value organic fertiliser – creating a profitable and sustainable circular economy model – by piloting enzymatic unhairing and solid waste valorisation technologies. Ethiopia is globally recognised for its superior leather quality, particularly that of highland sheep,

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Sustainability must be built from the bottom up: A showcase of Reverse Resources

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Traceability enables textile manufacturing and recycling companies to be more transparent and to visualise recycling practices for more accountability. SMEP grantee Reverse Resources, expands the circulation of post-industrial textile waste (PIW) in Bangladesh and Pakistan using the Reverse Resources platform, which integrates digital tools, standardised processes, and business models to align and connect stakeholders in

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Raw potential: How Africa is recasting industrial power beyond plastics

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The future of Africa’s industrialisation may not lie in silicon chips or machine learning but in sustainable natural materials and regional cooperation. Across East and West Africa, governments are moving beyond extractive models and towards policies that fuse environmental resilience with industrial renewal. In Ghana, a national policy blueprint is steering the country’s economy towards

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Scaling sustainable natural fibres for a circular bioeconomy and industrial growth in East Africa

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Photo Credit: Maria Durleva. SMEP Programme Global textile systems are shifting in response to questions about the sustainability, sourcing, and environmental footprint of the fabrics we use. The textiles industry, valued at $1.6 trillion in 2023, is projected to reach $3.3 trillion in 2030, contributes to 2-8% of global greenhouse gas emissions and consumes about

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Circular bioeconomy and closed-loop circular solutions

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While the specific figures on the contribution of organic waste to the Republic of Kenya’s gross domestic product (GDP) are not available, the economic potential of this waste is locally and regionally recognised and is growing. Large volumes of organic waste stem from agriculture, food and beverage industries, households, and commercial sources. In Nairobi, organics

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