“E-waste,” a term for discarded electronic products near the end or at the end of their useful life, contains hazardous materials like mercury, arsenic, and cadmium among other toxic substances. Although e-waste is the largest growing segment of the municipal waste stream in industrialized countries, international and domestic laws – and the enforcement of those laws – have not caught up. Due to weak domestic laws, weakly enforced international laws, and the high cost of properly handling, disposing of, or recycling e-waste, e-waste continues to be exported internationally to developing countries.

The West African countries of Nigeria and Ghana have recently become the leading recipients of the developing world’s e-waste. Most of the e-waste that is shipped to the metropolitan port cities of Lagos and Accra, however, is unsalvageable, and those who often dismantle this e-waste come from poorer and younger segments of the Nigerian and Ghanaian population.

Often, low-income children in Ghana and Nigeria end up burning the ewaste in highly unsafe conditions in order to salvage what few precious metals remain. These dangerous dismantling practices present immense environmental and human health implications. However, with international cooperation and the right economic incentives, the tide of this toxic trade can be stemmed and the international community can more effectively address the lasting negative effects this trade has on global health and the environment.