On October 30 2026, Xinhua reported that Chako Zanzibar’s bottle‑upcycling program has prevented more than five million discarded glass bottles from ending up in landfills and trained over 400 local people, giving women new economic opportunities and a path to independence.
Mwanamkuu Mussa, 52, a mother of four from Stone Town, joined Chako in 2021 after teaching at a nursery school. The enterprise, founded by Dutch entrepreneur Anneloes Roelandschap in 2012, collects waste from hotels and resorts, cleans and transforms the glass into drinking glasses, vases, lamps, and decorative items sold to tourists and locals alike.
“Working at Chako has helped me become an independent woman,” Mussa told Xinhua. She now trains new artisans, manages bottle collection and maintains the workshop’s organization. The additional income enabled her to open a DVD library and fund her children’s schooling and medical care.
Chako’s growth has made a tangible environmental impact: more than five million bottles have been diverted from Zanzibar’s landfills, while the social enterprise’s inclusive model offers practical skills, steady income, and the freedom for women to influence their families’ futures.
Roelandschap explained that the company began after her hotel in Stone Town, opened in 2008, revealed the mismatch between tourism’s profits and the island’s waste management challenges. By converting tourism‑generated waste into marketable products, Chako has created jobs and closed a loop between the hospitality industry and local communities.