As part of its long-term commitment to environmental sustainability, Transnational Corporation Plc, Transcorp Group, is scaling its school recycling initiative across Nigeria, starting with host communities. The programme, which recently at Ireti Grammar School in Ikoyi, Lagos, was aimed at embedding sustainability into school culture by promoting environmental literacy, forming eco clubs, and instilling responsible waste management practices in students. Chiemelie Ezeobi writes that with climate challenges mounting and urban cities struggling with waste, Transcorp’s initiative goes beyond corporate social responsibility, rather a strategic investment in Nigeria’s ecological future and the development of a generation committed to champion it
In the heart of Ikoyi, Lagos, a quiet revolution recently unfolded at Ireti Grammar Schools-not fueled by protest but by environmental awareness as the students discovered that even discarded plastic can be a social and ecological source.
The catalyst? Transnational Corporation Plc (Transcorp Group), one of Africa’s leading conglomerates with investments spanning energy, hospitality, and power, took these bold strides into environmental education for these students.
Why you may ask? As part of its broader Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) commitments, Transcorp launched the school recycling programme aimed at instilling a sense of environmental responsibility in secondary school students across Nigeria.
A Greener Tomorrow Starts Today
At Ireti Grammar Schools in Ikoyi, Lagos, it was a mix of engagement, education, and enthusiasm as Dr. Owen D. Omogiafo, President and Group CEO of Transcorp Plc, led students through the importance of waste management and the value of plastic as more than just disposable waste.
“We are doing this because we have a duty towards the environment,” Dr Omogiafo told the students. “This is just to encourage you to take care of your environment and take care of yourselves. Recycling can also create jobs—something as simple as selling empty bottles or iron scrap to those who buy them”.
Changing the Narrative Around Waste
Her words struck a chord with the students, who were not only eager to learn but curious about how something as ordinary as a plastic bottle could shape their future.
Nigeria generates between 4,100 to 6,850 tonnes of plastic waste every day, much of which ends up in landfills, gutters, and oceans, posing serious environmental and public health hazards. It can take a plastic item between 20 to 1,000 years to decompose — a sobering reality that underlines the urgent need for action.
“It’s not just about throwing things away,” Dr Omogiafo explained. “We need to let people know that throwing things in the gutter in the name of discarding waste is not a good idea. Our goal is to continue doing our best to power everyone into a better future — for Nigeria and for Africa at large.”
To that end, Transcorp donated specially fabricated, segregated waste bins to Ireti Junior and Senior Grammar Schools. These bins were designed to help students sort waste materials — plastics, paper, organic matter — and learn the critical skill of waste segregation.
However, THISDAY gathered that the initiative did not stop in Lagos. Through its power subsidiaries— Transcorp Power Plc, TransAfam Power Limited, and Transcorp Energy Ltd — the programme was replicated across other parts of Nigeria. In Rivers State, schools in Okoloma received similar donations, while in Delta State, eco-friendly bins were handed over to Erhavwen Secondary School and Adagwe Grammar School.
Empowering the Next Generation
Undoubtedly, at the core of this programme, which reflects the “Transcorp Transforms” theme, is a clear philosophy that investing in young people is the most sustainable way to protect the planet.
For Dr. Omogiafo, “At Transcorp, we recognise that sustainability is a collective journey. By sustaining this project in Lagos, Delta, and Rivers States with the footprint of our subsidiaries, we are not only addressing environmental challenges but also nurturing future leaders who will drive eco-conscious practices. Our Africapitalist ethos compels us to invest in communities where we operate, ensuring a greener, healthier tomorrow.”
A Grateful School and Inspired Students
For the management of the schools involved, the initiative came as both a gift and a wake-up call. This message resonated deeply with the students, who took a ‘reuse, redeem, and recycle’ pledge at the event. They committed to using the bins correctly, reducing plastic waste, and becoming advocates of environmental stewardship in their homes and communities.
Mrs. Okuyemi Babafemi, Principal of Ireti Senior Grammar School, expressed heartfelt appreciation to Transcorp. “The programme teaches the children how to keep their PET bottles,” she said. “It is good because in the future, they will know how to manage plastic, how to be productive students, and not wasteful children. I really align with this initiative and I’m happy the organisers came up with the idea.”
She added that environmental education was often missing from the traditional curriculum, and such programmes helped bridge that critical gap.
“I believe that what the students learn here today will influence how they treat the environment for the rest of their lives,” Mrs Babafemi said. “This is how change begins — not through grand speeches, but through small, consistent acts.”
Strategic Partnerships and Future Growth
The school recycling initiative is powered in partnership with Recycle Points, a waste recycling and social benefit enterprise founded by alumni of the Tony Elumelu Foundation. The collaboration brings practical expertise in sustainable waste solutions, while connecting students to real-world applications of recycling.
“This initiative is not just about the bins or even the act of recycling,” Dr. Omogiafo noted. “It is about creating a new mindset — one that views waste not as a nuisance, but as an opportunity for innovation, employment, and sustainability.”
Looking ahead, Transcorp aims to scale the initiative further, integrating it into more schools within its host communities and eventually across the nation. The long-term vision includes embedding sustainability in school culture, building eco clubs, and incorporating environmental literacy into co-curricular activities.
With the climate crisis intensifying and urban cities facing increasing waste management challenges, initiatives like this are more than timely — they are necessary.
Therefore, Transcorp’s school recycling programme is more than a CSR checkbox; it is an investment in Nigeria’s ecological future, and a commitment to grooming young Nigerians who understand that every bottle sorted, every bin used correctly, and every conversation about recycling matters.
In the words of one student at Ireti Grammar School, who stood proudly holding his pledge card: “I didn’t know that something as small as plastic could matter this much. Now I want to tell my family, my friends — even people in my street — that we must take care of our environment.”
With such young voices rising, and with corporations like Transcorp leading the charge, there is genuine hope that Nigeria’s next generation will grow up not just learning about the environment in textbooks, but living the principles of sustainability — every single day.
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