JICA pilot project (Smart Waste Collection and Transportation) starts a trial IoT based waste collection and transportation in Siem Reap City

The JICA Siem Reap Smart City Project has implemented several smart city pilot initiatives, one of which is the “Smart Waste Collection and Transportation,” aiming at improving waste collection efficiency using IoT technology. The pilot project has installed uniform waste bins with QR codes at 11 collection points in the selected commune in Siem Reap City and started a trial of smart waste collection and transportation using the newly developed web and mobile applications.
A kick-off meeting was held on June 5, 2024, at the Sla Kram commune. On the day, 15 uniform waste bins were handed over to the representatives of the Sla Kram commune, then they were briefed on how to manage the waste bins and the application.

This pilot project aims to solve the problems based on the findings by “a time-and-motion survey (T&M Survey)”, a survey technique to track waste collection vehicles to assess and improve the implementation and technical aspects of collection operations. The survey conducted by the JICA Siem Reap Smart City Project identified problems such as inefficient collection and transportation of waste due to the use of non-uniform waste containers, which hamper the efficient waste loading. Besides, the residents are not well informed of the collection schedule at an appropriate timing.
Aiming to resolve these problems, the pilot project has supported the installation of uniform waste bins and developed and started operating the web and mobile applications that visualize and manage the waste collection status via IoT.

The web and mobile applications have been named the “Smart Clean Siem Reap Application”. The commune residents are now able to receive notifications via the mobile app on the twice-weekly collection days to dispose of their waste, and waste service providers can easily manage the status of their waste collection via the operator's app. This makes it possible to monitor the collection status and prepare residents for waste collection beforehand.

This pilot project has been conducted involving various actors concerned with waste management including the Siem Reap Provincial Administration, the Siem Reap City Hall, the Department of Environment, GIZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH) and, a private waste service provider. The pilot project is expected to improve waste collection efficiency as well as enable on-time collection according to the collection schedule employing the developed applications.