E-Waste in Africa

Defective computers in a waste pile

E-waste is categorized as used EEE including refrigerators, cell phones, and computers.[4]

Africa has seen a significant usage of personal computers and mobile phones in the past decade.[5] The continent produced 2.5 kg per capita of e-waste in 2019, which is the lowest rate in the world.[4] 60% of e-waste is imported into the continent, and it is often processed manually with the intent to resell.[5]

The Port of Lagos in Nigeria is a primary location for importing EEE and its capital, Ikeja, stores obsolete e-waste.[6] The United States and Europe deliver EEE daily to Ikeja's marketplace, and approximately 25 to 75% of it is irreparable.[6] The absence of regulatory agencies in developed countries allows them to export into vulnerable checkpoints in Nigeria, thereby exacerbating the growing amount of e-waste.[6] Simultaneously, according to the United Nations Environment Programme, Ghana and West Africa themselves produces 85 percent of e-waste that ultimately remains in Ghana.[7] The same UN programme determined 215,000 metric tons of EEE were imported into Ghana in 2009, with 15 percent being dumped into the Ghana's Agbogbloshie dump site.[7] More broadly, Ghana, Nigeria, and Tanzania receive e-waste from Europe and the UK.[3]

"Leakage" is used to describe the illegal exportation of waste.[3] The Basel Action Network (BAN) tracked e-waste arriving to recycling centers in ten European countries and discovered 64% of it subsequently being shipped to Africa.[3] Additionally, the BAN identified the UK as the main exporter of EEE to underdeveloped countries. It approximates Europe countries export 352,474 metric tons to developing countries nationally.[3]

Electronic Waste at Agbogbloshie, Ghana

Gold, copper, and other valuable metals and minerals are sought after in e-waste, and despite the environmental and public health effects, people informally work in dumping sites.[2] Agbogbloshie provides work for an estimated 4500 to 6000 people, and byproducts from e-waste have made it a global business.[8] Roughly USD 105 to 268 million is generated by the market while also benefiting 200,000 people.[8] Also in Ghana, aluminum sourced from e-waste is repurposed to manufacture cooking pots and are then sold in the market.[9]

In Egypt, recycling is a market necessity as second-hand and third-hand products are sought out by users.[9] Within the past 8 years, cell phone and computer purchases increased greater than 20 times.[9] The informal sector of its economy collects and moves e-waste, pulls valuable materials out of it, and sells those materials to recyclers among other consumers.[9] Additional materials can be derived from e-waste and recyclers can barter them to companies. Circuit boards and wires can be burned for copper without state interference.[9] In general, although the waste is dangerous to handle, few workers wear protective gloves, goggles, etc.[10]

Workers at Agbogbloshie, Ghana

In 2012, a Fieldwork study conducted around Agbogbloshie to assess local concerns about informal e-waste settlements revealed that 96% of respondents perceived a rise in health concerns as a result of the waste settlements and processes. 30% of respondents called into question the breeding of mosquitoes and subsequent rise in malaria risk, while another 40% recalled bodily injury as a result of accidents in the landfills themselves.[11] The burning of e-waste emits toxic particulate matter into the atmosphere from metals and plastics used in devices, cords, circuit boards, etc. Breathing in these toxins often results in respiratory problems for nearby populations. Other symptoms include headaches, skin irritation, gastrointestinal diseases, liver complications, and poisoned fetuses.[12] Chemicals such as mercury, copper, lead, and arsenic leak out of e-waste into soil and water streams, creating an accumulation of harmful chemicals in the ecosystem and its food chains.[13] The expansion of e-waste sites and unsatisfactory waste management practices results in negative impacts on agriculture: space becomes limited for grazing animals and crop production potential.[12]

A 2021 survey of 216 students conducted at Lupane State University in Zimbabwe reveals that 97% of students were unaware of national e-waste recycling procedures, and almost 64% admitted to disposing of EEE with municipal waste, though aware of its negative health impacts. In Zimbabwe, improper management of e-waste is acknowledged by local populations as a problem, but there are no known efforts to mandate proper management procedures.[12]

• Olusosun landfill
• Agbogbloshie