Discarded clothing items of the BOGOTÁ-GIRARDOT ROAD are transformed into products by 25 reincorporated families
• 25 reincorporated families make up the Tejiendo Paz -Tejepaz- cooperative which makes different items, including teddy bears, from discarded work clothes of the Concession to generate income.
• Since 2018, the Concession in charge of the Bogotá-Girardot Third Lane project has been working closely with the Reincorporation and Normalization Agency (ARN), in various productive projects in Icononzo, Tolima as a commitment to building peace and reconciliation in Colombia.
• With the support of the Concession, led by French company VINCI Highways, the members of Tejepaz have standardized and improved their processes and were able to market their products to more private companies.
Within the framework of circular economy and in line with its environmental goals, The Concession in charge of the modernization, extension and rehabilitation of the BOGOTÁ – GIRARDOT ROAD, led by VINCI Highways, gives out discarded clothes from its workers to the Tejepaz cooperative, through a partnership with the ARN, to be used as input for products and which strengthens the productive capacity of the workshops of 25 reincorporated families in Icononzo, Tolima.
Thanks to this joint work, they have manufactured sports bags, pencil cases, fanny bags, etc., using discarded clothes, and, due to the success of the program and as the productive unit of the cooperative has grown, they started producing teddy bears, preventing discarded clothes from being treated as waste and reaching the landfills, and it also strengthens AVANZA, the brand with which the cooperative is positioning its products in the market.
Being the first private company to bet on their project, the support provided by Vía 40 Express to Tejepaz has been fundamental to move forward towards reconciliation and strengthen their marketing. According to Laurent Cavrois, General Manager of the Concession, “this initiative is an example of our commitment and the commitment of VINCI Highways to Positive Mobility, our purpose is to leave legacy beyond infrastructure. This project with Tejepaz helps us to reduce our carbon footprint, to reduce stress on landfills, air pollution and to promote circular economy, while we generate a new opportunity for those people who have decided to reincorporate themselves into society”.
“This has been a beautiful experience because I have learned many things. From administrative processes, processing an invoice, to paying taxes. I had no idea how to turn on a machine or how to hold a pair of scissors, but I took this step, and it has been very significant for me because we are creating jobs for our Partners, and our dream is to grow. The Concession believed in us from the beginning, and that helped us to challenge ourselves in order to increase the variety of products we made and to have samples to offer to other companies” said Gonzalo Beltrán, legal representative of the Tejiendo Paz Cooperative.
