By Claire Zerida Balungi
Poor waste disposal is not just an environmental injustice on moral grounds. It elicits consequences far beyond our ordinary imagination as it advances the effects of climate change.
Martin Tumusiime was a student for whom the ability to respond to the need for proper waste disposal wasn’t simply a way to spend one’s time, but to instead truly think of creating solutions to the problem. His university work and personal life were “like poles” that attracted each other. Moreover, he was unaware of the popular student life; he did not run to prepare for porridge nights or pluck on his swimsuit to dive into the swimming pool above Nkrumah Hall after class. Tumusiime found much-needed quiet and comfort on the second floor of the Main Library. Call him nerdy, but there, in the EASLIS (East African School of Library and Information Science) section, he’d push his Ethernet jack into his computer and for hours on end plug into the global network, coding and nodding through lilts and tilts of his music choice. It was in this corner, on October 13, 2018, that he birthed his baby, Yo-Waste, the mobile app that connects households and offices to the nearest garbage collection services.
The inspiration to build the app
Martin Tumusiime joined Makerere University in 2017 and pursued a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science degree on the private scheme at the College of Computing and Information Sciences (CoCIS). During the nights and when he felt unwell, he rested in his rented room down in Kikoni, near the mixed Nakiyingi Hostel. Like many students, renting was Martin’s preferred choice as it came with a great sense of independence for a young male who was starting out and did not want rules; they thrived in student hostels and halls. He however remained loyal to University Hall which he was administratively attached to, having lunch and dinner there during his three years on the campus—four if you count the year of Covid-19.
Tumusiime had in 2015 witnessed the gut-churning nature of poorly disposed waste when he stayed with his aunt in Kawempe, Kazo. He would learn that the challenge and frustration of managing waste in cities was a big nightmare. Then, he was convinced that Uganda needed a 21st-century waste management solution.
Mr. Martin Tumusiime, the founder of Yo-Waste
When an innovation competition was announced at his college, Tumusiime took it seriously, and pitching the necessity of tech in building livable cities, the Yo-Waste App won best science project. The concept explained that as more people begin living in urban cities, there is a continued need for the necessary infrastructure and better service delivery including that of waste management, as people would have to live in clean cities. With this win, Tumusiime felt encouraged. A dream was materializing! The win came with a package of Shs 6m from the college, which was an excellent foundation for Yo-Waste. This student innovation also emerged runner-up in an MTN startup accelerator programme and got about Shs 7m. More funding was secured from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which Yo-Waste has worked with extensively throughout its journey. The tech start-up plunged into the world in 2020 and had the business fully registered.
How it works
Yo-Waste’s major business is the app. Once downloaded from Google Play Store or App Store, customers can subscribe to garbage collection services through the app. Yo-Waste will assign them the nearest and most efficient garbage collector, who may be a partner waste collection company or Yo-Waste itself as it owns garbage trucks. A collection schedule can be generated by the customer, even for one who may need a one-time collection. A waste pick-up will be performed by the waste hauler and a payment can be made through the app or via mobile money. One can also report a missed pick-up through the app and view a history of their payments and invoices.
A user tries out the Yo-Waste mobile App
A faithful champion of environmental protection, Tumusiime’s mission with Yo-Waste is to build zero-waste communities, but to also make people see waste as a resource. Annually, Yo-Waste reaches over 10,000 households, collects about 3,000 tonnes of waste and so far, recycles over 100 tonnes.
Challenges met
The growing startup was not without its struggles. In 2018, MTN was launching its first accelerator programme and wanted a tech solution that could use the Mobile Money API. Yo-Waste jumped on the idea and worked around the requirements to ensure it was the solution MTN needed. Between December of that year and February of 2019, Martin and his team hit their fingers on their keyboards and worked as smart as they could at the code. When they set out to test the app in the field, they’d meet head-on with the disappointment that their well-coded app was just another fancy toy and rather impractical in the communities. Like all of us sometimes, Tumusiime and his team had got things wrong this time. Having spent almost five months building what they thought would be a feasible solution, at that point, he would have given up, but, “I like to finish what I start. I stand for excellence and make sure the job is done to completion however long it takes,” he says. His team had to start from scratch and redesign something more realistic.
When Tumusiime needed funding to advance the app in the right direction, his faith came into play. He led a Watoto Church cell group that gathered in Kikoni in 2018 and 2019. When he felt terribly challenged, he lined up Yo-Waste as a prayer point and asked his cell members to pray with him. One afternoon in 2021, he fondly narrated to me the exciting account of a Watoto Thanksgiving Sunday. He had prayed and asked God for a win for Yo-Waste at a funding competition that was much too tight for his comprehension. Dancing up the aisle of Watoto Downtown that Sunday, he took his gift to the altar. It was a huge amount of cash, because he needed a big answer. And yes, his prayer was answered. Yo-Waste received funding that was a game-changer for Tumusiime’s ambition.
Another time, a funding decision had to be made in five minutes. He called some friends to use that time and say a prayer for Yo-Waste. USD 100,000 was secured from Bestseller Foundation, Yo-Waste’s first investor.
And so, it did get a lot of attention, but that wasn’t all. Tumusiime and his team spent sleepless nights working on the app. He may not have ended climate change, but he did come up strong to tackle a problem with his mind and heart, and he has not found a reason to be employed since. Makerere University has given him his Computer Science degree, which he attributes his financial independence to.
Tumusiime is not only a witness to the age of tech disruption, but has been part of it, becoming Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at the young age of 23. Much to his dismay, so far both the government and its citizens are not doing enough to manage Uganda’s waste. Since Yo-Waste is as much a social enterprise as it is a for-profit business, it raises awareness about proper waste disposal and collects a percentage of Kampala’s waste that would have otherwise ended up in water channels or been left to rot on the streets. This is Tumusiime’s contribution as a citizen of Uganda to save the environment, and he appreciates Makerere for supporting him on his mission. He encourages students to put their class-learned skills to practical use because they would be amazed at what they can do with it, to help their communities.
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