UNDP Accelerator Lab in Libya: Volunteers collect garbage from Abu Nowas beach in Tripoli

70 volunteers gathered at Abu Nowas beach in Al Andalus, Tripoli, to remove garbage as the first step to scale up a solid waste management strategy that will involve civil society, private sectors and institutions.

“The Accelerator Lab in Libya will bring a new breeze to the sustainable development agenda.  I see it as a new catalyzer to speed up development. We have created a new team that will work together with creative local actors on several experiments to look for synergies to solve challenges in Libya. Today, people went out together to clean up the beach. This is just the first step of a more joinly, innovative, and inclusive approach for sustainable development in Libya,” said Mr Gerardo Noto, UNDP Resident Representative for Libya.

The volunteers who participated in the activity expressed their conviction on the importance of maintain clean the cities and respect the environment.

“Increasing the environment consciousness in Libya will help all of us, our family, and future generations to have a better and healthier life and enjoy the nature,” said one of the participants.

Tackling the solid waste management in the country is the first policy frontier challenge that the Accelerator Lab is working on.

During the next 100 days, UNDP Accelerator Lab team will bring together local organizations and individuals, private companies and government institutions to start short cycle of experimentation that will scale up on successful ideas and will be implemented across the country. The next frontier challenge to tackle will be youth employment.

The Accelerator Labs are UNDP’s new way of working in development. 60 labs serving 78 countries will work together with national and global partners to find radically new approaches that fit the complexity of current development challenges.

The Lab in Libya will analyze challenges within local contexts to identify connections and patterns in search of new avenues of work to act effectively in addressing wicked development challenges.

“We are aiming at creating youth employment and build a community of innovators in Libya.” The organizers said.