The fisherman catching rubbish to save his beach

A Tanzanian fisherman has won the admiration of many who visit a beautiful stretch of beach in the coastal city of Dar es Salaam.

Thanks to Emmanuel Basonde, for the last three years its golden sands have not been strewn with rubbish.

He was spurred into the action by the unsightly piles of detritus from plastic bags and old bottles to cigarette packets and human waste on Kunduchi beach.

He borrowed a rake – and hasn’t looked back. During his spare time, when he is not out on his boat – Emmanuel is raking a 2km (1.2-mile) stretch.

The municipal authorities do collect rubbish from the beach occasionally – but it is not a daily service – more monthly. To give you some idea about the quantities involved, Emmanuel says in about half an hour he can rake up enough bottles to fill a minivan.

“During the day my biggest backers are my friends, but they are notorious litterers at night,” he told the BBC. After sundown, people come down to the beach to relax and sometimes to party.

Emmanuel has mobilised some youths to join him in his campaign – and he then takes the rubbish to a waste tip.

Though their efforts have been set back by a lack of equipment as the ocean’s salty water erodes metal rakes fast and the plastic ones wear out.

But Emmanuel is full of plans for the beach: “We need to have other streams of revenue here besides fishing.

“We should think of having beach soccer and water sports at Kunduchi beach. When tourists come it will create job opportunities for tour guides, cooks and drivers.

“It’s my dream for this beach to be the best beach in the world.

By BBC