Towards a living income for (e-)waste pickers in Ghana

Globally, West Africa receives the most uncontrolled used-Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) and e-waste from other countries compared to its own e-waste generation. The used-EEE and e-waste imported to West Africa, and Ghana in particular, is coming primarily from Europe. In Ghana 95% of e-waste is collected and recycled informally. It is estimated that artisanal recycling provides income for between 121.800 - 201.600 people in Ghana. 

Many social sustainability risks are present in artisanal e-waste recycling in Ghana: waste picker incomes represent less than 40% of a living income, waste pickers engage in hazardous dismantling practices detrimental to their health and the environment and, children work as waste pickers or children of waste pickers need to work to supplement the family’s income.

In this project, Fairphone and Argo360 are partnering with the Ghanean organisations GreenAd and the Greater Accra Scrap Dealer Association (GASDA). 

The aim of this project is to investigate the social sustainability risk in e-waste recycling in Accra. Interventions will be designed around:

1. Strategies to increase waste picker incomes;
2. Improve working conditions (including health and safety);
3. How some e-waste fractions can be recycled locally according to the Best Applicable Recycling technology to ensure the best balance between social, environmental and economic value.