International E-Waste Day: Uganda’s ticking time bomb — and the chance to turn it into opportunity

Every few years I replace my phone, a neighbour drops an old laptop at the market, and at the office someone brings in a pile of obsolete chargers. These are small, familiar moments. Taken together across a nation, they add up to a problem we can no longer treat as someone else’s: electronic waste, or e-waste. On International E-Waste Day, let’s take stock of where Uganda stands — the facts, the risks, what’s already being done, and the real opportunities we’re sitting on if we act now.

Quick facts (so we know what we’re dealing with)

Uganda generates an estimated 41 million kilograms of e-waste each year — roughly 0.9 kg per person. Yet only about 0.2 million kilograms are formally collected and recycled. That means over 99% of e-waste flows through informal channels, gets stored, dumped, burned, or simply left to rot.

Globally, e-waste is growing fast. The Global E-waste Monitor shows rising volumes worldwide while formal recycling lags behind. That global trend mirrors what’s happening here.

Those numbers aren’t abstract. They translate into used batteries leaching toxins into soil, small electronics burned at scrap sites, and informal dismantling exposing workers and children to heavy metals. It is a time bomb for health and the environment.

How e-waste actually reaches the ground

In Uganda the path of a broken device typically follows one of a few routes:

Sold or given away for reuse or repair.

Collected by informal scrap dealers who dismantle devices for parts or precious metals.

Dumped with general waste, or burned in the open to extract metals.

Stored indefinitely in homes or offices because people don’t know what to do with them.

The formal collection and treatment infrastructure is minimal. That gap creates a big informal industry that keeps livelihoods afloat but does so at a high cost to health and the environment.

What the research tells us

National surveys and baseline studies show consistent themes: rising volumes, patchy awareness among consumers, and a dominant informal sector handling most end-of-life electronics. NITA-U’s baseline survey mapped devices across hospitals, universities, retailers, repairers, and government, providing a clearer picture of flows and gaps that should inform policy and action.

Environmental studies have also found elevated contamination in some market areas and informal repair clusters — proof that the problem already affects soil, water, and people living close to these sites.

What’s being done now — signals that we can build on

Uganda isn’t standing still. A few concrete moves matter:

1. National E-Waste Management Centre. The government, with partners, launched a national centre to receive, sort, and process e-waste. That gives us at least one formal node for safer handling and offers a model to replicate regionally.

2. UCC pilot collection project. The Uganda Communications Commission, together with the Ministry of ICT, KCCA, NEMA and other partners, has launched a pilot to collect ICT e-waste across parts of Greater Kampala. The pilot aims to test collection models, secure data destruction, ensure safe dismantling, and build public trust in a formal system. The project is designed to generate real-time behaviour data so future scaling is evidence based.

These are small but important wins. Pilots are where policy becomes practice. If they succeed, they can prove viable business models and policy levers for national roll-out.

The real danger: why this is a time bomb

E-waste contains hazardous substances: lead, mercury, cadmium, flame retardants, and others. When burned or dumped, these chemicals move into soils, water, air, and food chains. The risks are not only environmental. Informal workers, often without protective gear, face chronic exposure that affects neurological development, reproduction, and long-term health. Communities near dumps and repair clusters are most vulnerable.

Left unchecked, e-waste will:

Increase disease burden and health care costs.

Pollute agricultural lands and water sources.

Lock valuable raw materials away in landfill instead of reintroducing them to the economy.

That is the time bomb: slow, invisible, cumulative harm that will hit the most vulnerable first.

But there’s opportunity here — big and practical

E-waste is also a resource. The circuit boards, copper, aluminum, and precious metals inside devices are worth money. Turning the current mess into a circular system creates wins across the board:

Jobs and entrepreneurship. Formal collection, sorting, refurbishment, and recycling create safer employment, skills training, and small business opportunities.

Value recovery. Recover metals and components for local industry or export, building a circular economy.

Data security services. Secure data destruction and certified recycling can become a paid service for businesses and government.

Health and environment savings. Preventing contamination reduces long-term costs tied to healthcare and environmental remediation.

To capture these benefits we need to move from ad hoc cleanups to systems: collection networks, certified recyclers, take-back schemes, and public awareness.

What needs to happen next — practical, Uganda-shaped steps

Here are targeted actions that would make a measurable difference:

1. Scale and regionalize collection points. The national centre is good, but we need hubs and drop-offs closer to where people live and work. The UCC pilot can inform this design.

2. Make producers part of the solution. Adopt workable Extended Producer Responsibility rules so importers and manufacturers help fund take-back, refurbishment, and recycling. This shifts costs from taxpayers to the value chain.

3. Formalize the informal sector. Train and certify scrap collectors and repairers, provide protective equipment, and integrate them into the supply chain so livelihoods are preserved without the health costs.

4. Public awareness and easy options. Run radio, social media, and community campaigns that tell people where to drop devices, why it matters, and how they can earn from trading in old devices.

5. Standards and enforcement. Clear rules for safe dismantling, export controls, and penalties for harmful disposal will protect communities and create a level playing field.

6. Support local recycling tech and small-scale refineries. If we recover materials locally we create jobs and retain value.

A call to action — what readers can do today

Don’t keep dead devices in cupboards. Use official drop-off points or the UCC pilot collection where available.

Wipe personal data before disposal. Ask recyclers for a certificate of data destruction.

Choose refurbished or repairable devices when possible. Extend lifetimes.

For organizations: include e-waste in procurement contracts and insist on take-back clauses.

Civil society and faith groups: run repair clinics, collection drives, and awareness sessions in your communities.

Final thought

E-waste is not an abstract “environment” problem. It is about our neighbours, our children, and the places we farm, play, and pray. Uganda has taken the first difficult steps: a national centre, baseline research, and a pilot collection project to test real solutions. The next stage is scaling, integrating informal workers into safe systems, and turning waste into an engine of local value.

On International E-Waste Day let’s stop thinking of old phones and cables as trash and start treating them as a resource we must manage together. We can diffuse the time bomb, but only if government, business, communities, and consumers act in concert.

#AnInclusiveDigitalEconomy

#EwasteManagement #DigitalSafetyYourPriority

#GoldenPosts