Philippine Embassy in Bahrain supports ban on single-use plastic bags, upcycles old tarpaulin banners into reusable shopping bags

Participants of the OWWA Dressmaking skills training program. (Manama PE photo)

Manama — As support for Bahrain’s ban on single-use plastic bags, the Philippine Embassy in Manama launched its solid waste management project this month by upcycling old tarpaulin banners into reusable bags to replace non-biodegradable plastics and solid wastes.

Members of one group work on their reusable bag project. (Manama PE photo)

Madame Caroline Belinda Ver, spouse of Philippine Ambassador to Bahrain Alfonso Ver, launched the project as an added session of the Dressmaking Skills Training Program organized by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) at the Migrant Workers and Other Filipinos Resource Center (MWOFRC) attached to the Embassy courses on dressmaking.

According to the recent environmental forum which was held in Bahrain,  one reusable bag can replace at least 170 single-use plastic bags.

The samples of reusable shopping bags made by the participants are expected to carry the same capacity as the ones currently used by Bahrain’s largest hypermarket and department store chains.

Samples of the first batch of reusable bags made by the groups participating in the OWWA dressmaking skills training program. (Manama PE photo)

Once the final design is agreed upon, the Embassy will ask the Filipino organizations to give their old tarpaulin banners for conversion into reusable bags, these will eventually be distributed to the Filipino community and the public at large.

From left: Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Welfare Officer Redina Manlapaz, Philippine Ambassador to Bahrain Alfonso Ver and Madame Caroline Belinda Ver present one of the first reusable bags made by the dressmaking class. (Manama PE photo)

“The patterns may be shared to the public and different organizations, as well as to their respective families. Other individuals can take it upon themselves to make their own reusable shopping bags,” Embassy said.

For more information, visit https://www.manamape.dfa.gov.ph or
https://www.facebook.com/PHLinBahrain.

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