In brief
In Zanzibar’s villages, a social enterprise is turning discarded glass bottles into a lifeline for women and their families. The effort, launched by Dutch entrepreneur Anneloes Roelandschap, offers practical skills, income, and a path to education and health. The enterprise has already prevented millions of bottles from ending up in landfills and trained over four hundred locals.
Mwanamkuu Mussa, 52, is one of many women in Zanzibar who have found a new livelihood in turning discarded glass bottles into useful products for the island’s tourism industry. Joining the social enterprise Chako Zanzibar in 2021, she now clears a new workshop, trains other artisans, and sells the finished goods back to hotels and resorts. Her earnings have funded a DVD library, her children’s school fees, and covered medical costs; she now hopes to construct a home for her family.
Before her involvement with Chako, Mussa worked as a nursery school teacher. “Working at Chako has helped me become an independent woman,” she said. Her story mirrors the mission of the enterprise, which began when Dutch entrepreneur Anneloes Roelandschap and her partner opened a hotel in Stone Town in 2008 and noticed the industry’s waste problem and uneven distribution of economic benefits.
Roelandschap began collecting waste from hotels and resorts after observing the growing number of discarded bottles and plastic bottles in the island’s landfills. By 2012, she founded Chako to address the waste issue and create local jobs. The enterprise gathers glass bottles and plastic from the hospitality sector, cleans them, and transforms them into drinking glasses, vases, lamps, and decorative items. Tourists can buy the items as souvenirs, bringing a piece of Zanzibar’s culture back home while supporting local livelihoods.
Since its establishment, Chako has prevented more than five million bottles from ending up in Zanzibar’s landfills and has trained more than 400 local people, Roelandschap said. She added that most of the trained individuals are women, a result that “offers practical skills, a source of income, and the opportunity to make decisions about their families’ futures.”
The enterprise operates on a model that prioritizes both environmental and economic objectives. The conversion of waste bottles into finished products reduces landfill density and supports the island’s sustainability goals, while the economic component provides a steady source of labor income for local residents. By selling the finished goods back to the tourism sector, Chako establishes a closed loop that rewards communities that reduce waste.
Evidence of impact extends beyond Mussa’s personal achievements. According to the enterprise’s records, the 400 trained artisans have collectively produced thousands of items sold across Zanzibar’s hotels. The revenue generated by these sales has supported education programs, such as the DVD library that Mussa set up, and medical expenses that were previously unaffordable for many families in the area.
While the enterprise’s environmental successes are notable, the social dimension is equally significant. The training program places women at the center of economic activity, allowing them to claim agency in the decision-making processes about their households. Women report feeling “empowered” by the ability to earn a living, pay for school fees, and manage household budgets on their own terms.
Beyond the immediate community, Chako’s work also provides a model for how tourism economies can collaborate with local residents to address waste management and create income streams. Hotels and resorts have begun to view waste collection as an opportunity to support community development, thereby strengthening their corporate responsibility profiles and appealing to environmentally conscious travelers.
In the words of Roelandschap, “The expansion of tourism must bring benefits to all those who inhabit the island.” By linking waste collection to production and employment, the enterprise serves as a catalyst that turns environmental hazards into economic opportunities. Its dual focus on ecological stewardship and women’s empowerment highlights how integrated solutions can yield wide-ranging benefits in a tourism-dependent economy.
Meanwhile, the future of Chako includes plans to broaden its product line and reach more women through increased training and market outreach. The next milestone for many artisans, including Mussa, is the construction of homes and community infrastructure that reflect the skills they have mastered. The enterprise’s trajectory, therefore, signals a broader shift toward sustainable development and inclusive growth in Zanzibar’s tourism sector.