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The Financial Express

Bangladesh generates 2.81m tonnes of e-waste every year: Study  

| Updated: October 30, 2022 17:23:12


Bangladesh generates 2.81m tonnes of e-waste every year: Study   

Bangladesh sells electronic goods worth US$ 1.36 billion while generating approximately 2.81 million tonnes of e-waste every year, a study reveals.

It also found that some 40 per cent of the e-waste comes from refrigerators and 30 per cent from televisions.

Voices for Interactive Choice and Empowerment (VOICE), a research and advocacy organisation, shared the survey findings at an event titled "Review of E-waste Rules 2021 and Business Models’ Compliance of Electronic Goods Manufacturers with Environmental Sustainability" at the Civic Centre in the capital Saturday. 

According to VOICE, e-waste generation in Bangladesh is increasing at a rate of 20 per cent annually.

Every year approximately 296,302 TV sets are scrapped, creating some 0.17 million tonnes of e-waste in the country. In 2021, approximately 10,504 tonnes of e-waste was produced in Bangladesh by mobile handsets only, the survey disclosed.  

In the programme, sector experts suggested major investments to tap the full potential of the e-waste recycling industry.

They said that currently, despite the growing market for electronic products, the country recycles only 3.0 per cent of the e-waste, while the rest is dumped in landfills and rivers, posing a serious threat to health and the environment.

A study by the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) estimated that Bangladesh will produce 4.62 million tonnes of e-waste by 2035.

If enforced effectively, The Hazardous Waste (e-waste) Management rules, 2021, would be helpful to manage e-waste produced in Bangladesh, said VOICE in the programme. 

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