Handbags made from ring pulls provide income for Philippines’ poorest

Rexam, one of the world’s largest beverage can manufacturers, has donated 100,000 aluminium can ends to a project aimed at helping some of the world’s poorest people. The tabs from the can ends will be used to make a selection of striking handbags by people in the Philippines and, by being sold in the UK, will provide a much-needed income. The rest of the can end will be recycled to help build a new school to educated Filipino children who otherwise would have no access to education.

The company has made the donation to the Philippines Community Fund (PCF) whose aim is to permanently improve the quality of life for the poorest Filipino communities, through education, nutrition, health, medical and family enhancement programmes.

PCF runs three of its own schools for children who live in the poorest squatter areas in their region; two schools are located on rubbish dumps, and the other is in a cemetery. 

Children are selected from the poorest families and often have been working on the open dump sites.

John Kirby, Sales Manager for Rexam in UK and Ireland said: “We are delighted to be involved in this project, which provides both education to children and income to their families. The tabs will be made into handbags by the most disadvantaged parents of the children who would normally be working on the open dump site scavenging for pieces of plastic and metal to sell.”

Jane Walker, CEO of PCF said: “The parents are now earning four times higher than their normal income and they have a real sense of achievement, not just because they have mastered a new skill but also because they know that they are helping our charity to raise money as well as earning an income for themselves.”

In Manila PCF has started a Materials Recycling Facility (MRF) which handles over eight tonnes of waste materials a day. The rest of the aluminium from the can ends will either be sold in the MRF, with the profits going towards funding the activities of the school, or it will be used to decorate another school that is being made from unwanted shipping containers.

The 100,000 ring pulls will make approximately 300 handbags. A percentage of the profit from each bag will provide the parents with a substantial income, while the remaining profit will be invested back into the various PCF programmes.