Healthier electronic waste recycling

The project aimed to provide 200 e-waste recyclers at the Agbogbloshie scrap metal site in Accra with mechanical wire strippers. The technique was to create a triple advantage: increased incomes, job creation and improved health for the workers and the neighbouring communities, by avoiding the toxic fumes from cable burning.

180 wire recyclers were trained. The adoption of the mechanical wire stripper increased the recyclers’ income thanks to the sale of better quality copper, an essential element in changing behaviours. More than 6.8 tons of cables were processed in nine months (2.3 tons planned) and 10 jobs were created to operate the equipment. The project reduced CO² emissions by 3 tons and hydrochloric acid emissions by 1.2 tons. Two companies expressed interest in recuperating the plastics, shredded and compacted by a machine at the site, to ensure local recycling. The government adopted in December 2016 a law aiming to monitor the import and treatment of e-waste. The dialogue with the Health Protection Agency was ongoing relative to the site’s role as a model recycling and training centre.

Pure Earth (previously Blacksmith Institute) is an American international non-profit. Its mission is to develop and implement solutions for pollution-related problems in middle and low-income countries.