The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revealed plans to start recycling about 100 tons of paper banknote wastes generated weekly across the country.
The currency notes and coins withdrawn from circulation by the apex bank have been destroyed in 12 disposal centres across the country weekly.
The CBN stated in a communique tagged “Request for Proposal for the Recycling of Paper Banknote Wastes” that the naira notes wastes are destroyed through open air burning in sites owned by the Bank or rented, usually from the respective State Governments.
It added that “converting the waste materials into reusable objects will prevent wastage of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, minimise energy usage, avoid probable air pollution (from incineration) and water pollution (from landfilling).”
The apex bank called on accredited recycling companies interested in utilizing paper banknote wastes in its recycling process and help in converting them to useable products that would enhance economic activities in the country in addition to environmental sustainability.
“The purpose of this Request for Proposal (RFP) is to solicit competitive proposals from reputable companies that can recycle CBN paper banknote wastes into useable products that can be beneficial to the nation while adhering to Health Safety and Environment (HSE) Standards.”
It stressed that reputable companies should submit sealed bids for the purchase of Paper Banknotes briquettes on a monthly/quarterly contract basis from May 2020 and until further notice, while encouraging single or multiple vendors to submit proposals.
The requirements as stated by the CBN include; location of the factory and current activities, recycling process or technology to adopt, either for sole paper or mixed, the type of recycled products to be generated from the recycling process.
Other requirements are “the logistics for accessing or evacuating the banknote wastes from the locations where they are generated; Compliance with health, safety, and environmental standards; It should be noted that under no circumstances should the banknote wastes be diverted to any place other than the premises of the industrial outfit using it.”
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