Business Daily (Nairobi)
Okuttah Mark
25 February 2008
Nokia has launched a take-back and recycling initiative that offers consumers a structured way to dispose of old mobile phones and accessories.
This initiative comes at a time when the country was getting more concerned about handling electronic waste.
Under the move, consumers will drop old mobile phones and accessories at designated Nokia care centres including handsets from other manufacturers.
Nokia's customer care manager for East Africa, Nicholas Maina, said the initiative would enhance safe disposal of the gadgets. Nokia has so far set up four collection points at Itecs, Telebell, Authentic and Technoservice in Nairobi.
The waste will be passed on to selected companies that can ensure proper end of life disposal or recycling.
The initiative is part of the company's environmental strategy that is being rolled out in Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu before being expanded to the East African region.
There has been growing concern over the handling, treatment and disposal of electronic waste, especially because of their chemical composition, which are toxic. These pose a threat to human health and the environment.
A Non Governmental Organization (NGO), Practical Action, late last year called for the development of appropriate e-waste management strategies after a comprehensive survey.
The survey found that over 40 tonnes per year of these mobile phone related waste is generated in Nairobi. This did not include other electronic waste like television and computer monitors.
The NGO recommended that manufacturers be responsible for disposal of their used products.
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