Recycling wasn't a common activity in my country until recently when the citizens were informed about the benefits of participating in active recycling, as it helps preserve our planet and the more important reason people became active is for profit reasons, especially when they started seeing testimonies of people who became wealth, or financially stable and self-employed when they follow this path.
So, suffice to say that recycling has become more like a full-time job for those who dedicate themselves to it, while the rest of us are still challenged and still dispose of all items, even those that can be recycled. Not that we are not aware of the advantages of recycling, but a lot of people would rather complain about not having any time for such.
They believe it is only the jobless and those in need of money that take recycling seriously, not that there is any lie in this, as those mostly seen actively looking for disposable items that can be recycled are the low-class northerners. To make it worse, recycling is the least problem our government cares about, so there is no law actively in place to make citizens actively take part in recycling, or even any motivating solution, just like I see other governments do in more developed countries, having different types of bin colored differently to indicate different waste, the waste, compost and disposable are usually indicated, maybe if such system were put in place we might somehow actively participate, but over here, all waste, recycled or disposable goes to a single bin, and place just like where I reside they are burned not even transferred into a waste truck.
The recycling I'm active in is clothing, because I have a passion for sewing, so instead of seeing a non-usable cloth go to waste, especially if the fabric is in good condition, I would rather transform it from a boring outfit to a lively one and either use it myself or gift it to someone. There are also some teenage boys that I give the plastics we use at home to, according to them they go around the neighborhood collecting plastic bottles, and when they fill up a mosquito net with it, they are paid 15,000 naira for it, by recycling companies, I believe this is a better way they use their time than lazy around, so it isn't such a bad thing.
If you go online, you will come across so many beautiful useful items made out of recycled materials, I wish more people both young and old would take advantage of the opportunity to recycle, become more creative and reduce waste also make a profit from them.
To further encourage recycling among the citizens, the government needs to put in place a supportive infrastructure, such as separate waste collection systems as seen in other countries and recycling facilities. Additionally, continue to promote education and awareness about the importance of recycling as this can help shift the public perception bout recycling and inspire more people to take part in it.