The prime minister issued the video invitation, shared on WCD's social media account, which tagged the prime ministers of the U.K., Japan and Canada, and the presidents of South Africa, France and Nigeria, among others.

"This Saturday, people from around the world will participate in WCD," the prime minister said.

"All actions will be coordinated from Estonia – this is where WCD was born" he added, noting that this year's event must pay special attention to local coronavirus regulations and considerations.

WCD 2020 takes place Saturday, September 19, though the following week, starting September 21, is also an option for those who can't make the Saturday. 

The event's bread and butter activity is volunteer work cleaning up local areas – streets, parks, beaches, rural areas etc., with an emphasis on having a good time in the process.

Estonian PM, Mr. Jüri Ratas invites all people, prime ministers and presidents to join and support #WorldCleanupDay. Thank you @ratasjuri! @10DowningStreet @JustinTrudeau @alferdez @EmmanuelMacron @lopezobrador_ @PresidencyZA @jokowi @thepmo @narendramodi @ngrpresident @jpn_pmo pic.twitter.com/U8vQfY5bTD

— World Cleanup Day (@LetsDoItWorld1) September 15, 2020

Ratas noted that he would be taking part in Estonia on Saturday too, something he has done in previous WCD events.

"I invite you, dear colleagues, to join the global cooperation too," he added.

WCD began in Estonia as a localized initiative called "Teeme ära" over a decade ago, morphing later into a truly worldwide event. 

The day lasts a full 24 hours to reflect the world's time zones, starting in Fiji at midnight Estonian time, and ending a full rotation of the globe later in Hawaii.  

Last year's WCD attracted around 20 million people from most of the world's nations – but half of them from Indonesia – and saw nearly 30,000 people in Estonia alone take part.

Around 17,000 people, the bulk of them young people, had as of last weekend signed up for this year's World Cleanup Day; registered numbers are usually boosted by people who turn up on the day without registering.

 The Estonian state is supporting this year's event to the tune of €250,000.

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