An innovative Kenyan company which turns plastic waste into affordable roof tiles for homes has been given a financial boost by FTSE 100 packaging and paper company, Mondi Group.

Eco Blocks and Tiles has been selected by Mondi as the Lead2030 SDG 12 challenge winner and will receive $50,000 in financial investment, plus 12 months of business coaching, to equip the company with the expertise to grow.

Lead2030 was launched by One Young World, the global forum for young leaders, in November 2018 to support youth-led innovation to contribute to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Powered by some of the world’s leading businesses, Lead2030 aims to find, fund and accelerate youth-led solutions for each of the global goals and enable young innovators to scale and accelerate their impact.

Eco Blocks and Tiles mixes plastic waste with sand to make affordable, durable and eco-friendly roofing tiles in Kenya. In 2018, its first operational year, the company sold 50,000 roofing tiles and recycled approximately 50 metric tons of plastic waste. With the funding from Mondi, the company has the potential to increase output by up to 20 times within two years.

Eco Blocks & Tiles predicts it will be recycling 1,200 metric tons of plastic waste annually by 2024 – equivalent to the weight of 200 African elephants. The business has the potential to play an important role in tackling plastic waste and plans to use the financial investment and guidance from Mondi to scale and inform its long-term strategy as well as provide more secure jobs for local plastic pickers.

This investment will also allow Eco Blocks and Tiles to purchase new machinery to increase production. It will also fund marketing, advertising and exhibition costs, in addition to training 100 new roof masons.