Following the completion of her secondary education, Nzambi Matee enrolled in college, where she studied physics and materials engineering.
After finishing her degree, she gained experience as an engineer in the oil sector and as a data analyst before leaving her position in 2017.
Matee then chose to dedicate herself entirely to sustainability and waste management, establishing a small workshop in her mother’s backyard.
She began her journey by experimenting with the production of pavers, a process that took her a full year to determine the optimal ratios for the paving bricks.
In 2019, she constructed her own machine to facilitate large-scale production of plastic bricks, despite facing criticism from neighbors due to the noise generated by her equipment.
Matee was fortunate to receive a scholarship for a social entrepreneurship training program in the United States.
While there, she worked diligently to enhance her innovation, including testing and adjusting the proportions of sand and plastic.
After completing the program, Matee launched her startup, Gjenge Makers, which focuses on recycling plastic waste into bricks and paving stones.
The company is capable of producing between 500 and 1,000 bricks daily, recycling approximately 500 kilograms of plastic waste each day.
“Plastic waste is not just a Kenya problem, but it’s a worldwide problem. Here Nairobi we generate about 500 metric tones of plastic waste every single day and only a fraction of that is recycled
“We decided what more can we do instead of just sitting in the sidelines and complaining. Essentially, companies have to pay to dispose the waste, so we solved their problem,” she said.
Matee elaborated on the brick-making process, stating that the initial step involves sourcing plastics, which can be obtained from packaging factories or local recycling centers.
These plastics are then combined with sand in a machine that operates at extremely high temperatures, followed by compression through a press.
For example, the pavers produced in this manner are fully certified by the Kenyan Bureau of Standards and possess a melting point exceeding 350°C, making them significantly stronger than traditional concrete alternatives.
“Plastic is fibrous in nature, so therefore, the brick ends up having a stronger compression strength. We right now have a capacity of producing 1000 to 15000 bricks a day
“So far we have recycled 20 metric tons, and we’re looking to push that value to 50 by the end of next financial year,” she stated.
