Cell Phone Recycling Call Falls on Deaf Ears in South Africa

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Last updated April 12, 2019

It may be law in South Africa that makes the dumping of waste such as used cell phones and other electrical gadgets an illegal act, but that is unlikely to do much good if the great majority of companies in the country are unaware that there even is such legislation.  A new survey run by ITWeb in conjunction with Africa e-Waste has revealed that almost half of those who responded to the survey who are in the IT industry in the nation were utterly unaware that the dumping of electronic waste was in any way against the law, with 48 per cent saying that they had not heard about it.
The managing director of Africa e-Waste, Ulze van Wyk, was dismayed but not at all surprised by the news.  Wyk says that until organizations understand that dumping electronic waste is illegal and are aware of the possible consequences, little will change concerning the disposal of electronic waste such as old cell phones in South Africa.  “I expected this as I find it every time when I am dealing with e-waste issues,” Wyk notes.  “The survey shows the country has a lot of catching up to do… Managing e-waste in South Africa should not only be up to European standards, the country should follow its own legislation and solve the lack of knowledge of refurbishment and recycling infrastructures.”