Osibanjo O, Nnorom I C
Basel Convention Regional Centre for Africa for Training and Technology Transfer, Department of Chemistry, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.
Waste Manag Res. 2007 Dec;25(6):489-501. doi: 10.1177/0734242X07082028.
Information and telecommunications technology (ICT) and computer Internet networking has penetrated nearly every aspect of modern life, and is positively affecting human life even in the most remote areas of the developing countries. The rapid growth in ICT has led to an improvement in the capacity of computers but simultaneously to a decrease in the products lifetime as a result of which increasingly large quantities of waste electrical and electronic equipment (e-waste) are generated annually. ICT development in most developing countries, particularly in Africa, depends more on secondhand or refurbished EEEs most of which are imported without confirmatory testing for functionality. As a result large quantities of e-waste are presently being managed in these countries. The challenges facing the developing countries in e-waste management include: an absence of infrastructure for appropriate waste management, an absence of legislation dealing specifically with e-waste, an absence of any framework for end-of-life (EoL) product take-back or implementation of extended producer responsibility (EPR). This study examines these issues as they relate to practices in developing countries with emphasis on the prevailing situation in Nigeria. Effective management of e-waste in the developing countries demands the implementation of EPR, the establishment of product reuse through remanufacturing and the introduction of efficient recycling facilities. The implementation of a global system for the standardization and certification/labelling of secondhand appliances intended for export to developing countries will be required to control the export of electronic recyclables (e-scarp) in the name of secondhand appliances.
信息与通信技术（ICT）以及计算机互联网网络已经渗透到现代生活的几乎方方面面，甚至在发展中国家最偏远的地区也对人类生活产生着积极影响。ICT的快速发展提高了计算机的性能，但同时也导致了产品使用寿命的缩短，结果每年产生的废弃电子电气设备（电子垃圾）数量越来越多。大多数发展中国家，尤其是非洲国家的ICT发展更多地依赖二手或翻新的电子电气设备，其中大部分是未经功能确认测试就进口的。因此，这些国家目前正在处理大量的电子垃圾。发展中国家在电子垃圾管理方面面临的挑战包括：缺乏适当的废物管理基础设施、缺乏专门针对电子垃圾的立法、缺乏任何关于报废产品回收或实施生产者延伸责任（EPR）的框架。本研究审视了这些与发展中国家实践相关的问题，重点关注尼日利亚的当前形势。发展中国家有效管理电子垃圾需要实施生产者延伸责任、通过再制造建立产品再利用以及引入高效的回收设施。需要实施一个全球系统，对拟出口到发展中国家的二手电器进行标准化和认证/标签管理，以控制以二手电器之名出口电子可回收物（电子废料）的行为。
