Exploring electronic waste situation in Africa: a review
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Date
2023-12-30
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
J. Appl. Sci. Environ. Manage.
Abstract
In recent years African countries are grappling with the increase of electronic waste (e-waste) which poses challenge to environment and human health. However, factors influencing electronic waste situation in Africa have not been explored and thus not well understood. To fill the gap, this paper aims at exploring e-waste situation in Africa and analysing factors influencing the situation. To address the objective, a systematic literature review was adopted.
Findings show that the amount of e-waste has been increasing in both developed and developing countries over time. Although there are common factors associated with the increase of e-waste, some factors are unique to Africa. These are: reduced cost of used items, taxi incentives for importation of electronic devices and increased use of ICT devices in various sectors. Furthermore, findings show that developed and developing countries differ in terms of the risks
posed by the e-waste and this difference is dependent on how e-waste is managed. Based on the findings, it can be concluded that the situation of e-waste in Africa is somehow different from developed world both in terms of the factors influencing the situation and ways of managing e-waste. In order to deal with e-waste situation, African countries need to improve awareness of their people, establish and capacitate institutions for dealing with e-waste and invest in technologies for managing e-waste.
Description
Keywords
E-waste, Situation, Factors, Africa
Citation
R, Martin, Respiciuos, Mwakatoga, Joyce , Madaha, Rasel, Babili, Innocent, Kibonde, Suma, and Sanga, Camilius. (2024). Exploring Electronic Waste Situation in Africa: A review. Journal of Applied Sciences and Environmental Management. 27. 2743-2750