Business
By Benprince Ezeh
ITREALMS Media Group has said that the Waste of Electrical and Electronic Equipment, WEEE, such as mobile phones, computers, TV-sets, and fridges have become the fastest growing waste streams across the globe.
Remmy Nweke, Editor-In-Chief, ITREALMS media said in his welcome address on Thursday December 9 in Lagos at the 2nd ITREALMS e-Waste Dialogue, that the objective of the dialogue was to scrutinize the challenges and opportunities of end-of-life of electrical and electronic equipment that enables connectivity, especially on mobile computing devices; bringing together various manufacturing and recycling companies, regulatory agencies, as well as service providers to elaborate on waste management challenges.
Nweke explained that the event themed: E-waste in Nigeria: Consumer as a key to Circular Economy and 20 Years of GSM, would also examine the “prospects of responsible recycling as data centres, 5th Generation Network, 5G, and Internet of Things, IoT, demands soar”.
“Given Nigeria’s population, the country is particularly burdened by the WEEE with estimated 1.1 million tonnes of e-waste annually, arising from both local and imported Electrical and Electronic Equipment, EEE, under the guise of second hand or fairly used.
“It is evident that as the active internet data subscriptions across all the Nigerian Mobile Network Operators increase, these devices are expected to grow into million tonnes of e-waste of mobile devices by end of 2021. This is aside from the fairly used imported devices meant for cushioning the digital divide,” he said.
According to him, to tackle e-waste needs to be backed by a sound policy and regulatory environment.
He disclosed that the International Telecommunication Union, ITU, says that today, only 78 countries are covered by a national e-waste policy, legislation, or regulation.
“Global E-Waste Monitor by ITU, worldwide, about 53.6 million metric tonnes of e-waste were generated in 2019 and Nigeria is not isolated as technology evolves.
“ITREALMS e-Waste Dialogue also targets stakeholders involved in the management of business-to-business, B2B infrastructure WEEE, especially from industry, international organisations, academic networks, subscriber groups, and telecom media, etc.
He, however, noted that Information and Communication Technologies, ICT, plays an important role in economic growth and promoting Internet and mobile telecommunication access and services.
“These include digital networks, mobile phones, Internet servers, and fixed broadband.
“Digital devices such as mobile phones, tablets, and computers support the movement of data, which in turn expands global connectivity and economic activity. These have continued to increase the use of, and dependence on device connectivity as contributing factor to the growing demands for ICT devices
“We are optimistic that raising awareness and exchanging knowledge of this complex waste stream will provoke thought and support the transition to a sustainable society and circular economy as we anticipate 5G full implementation,” Nweke added
Tags: Benprince Ezeh ITREALMS Media Group Remmy Nweke
