 Because Cairenes are generally not aware of the distinction between the wahiya and the Zabbaleen (also called zarraba), they continue to refer to both groups as Zabbaleen.It should be noted, however, that these two groups are distinct, serving different functions in the informal economy of collecting Cairo's municipal solid waste (MSW).In response to government pressures to upgrade and modernize the refuse collection system, the Wahiya and the Zabbaleen made an agreement which resulted in the establishment of the Environmental Protection Company, as a private-for-profit company in 1989.