The convenience offered by plastic bottles and single-use plastic bags for beverages and other uses is a commonly accepted fact in East Africa. But do we ever stop to think about what happens each time we discard them?
The United Nations Environment Programme estimates that more than 8.3 billion tonnes of plastics have been produced globally since the 1950s, with around 60 per cent of them ending up in landfills and other areas, including marine ecosystems.
It is estimated that since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020, single-use plastics have increased by 250 to 300 per cent. Before the pandemic, Personal Protective Equipment, many of them made of plastic, were confined within hospitals and the construction sector. Today, PPE, especially disposable face masks, have become a key environmental issue, adding to an already growing plastics crisis.
The accumulation of plastics in the environment has many negative consequences for wildlife, food chains and human health.
Whereas wealthier nations have developed proper regulations on the use of plastic products and packaging, many developing countries such as Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania are still struggling with their plastic industries. The main concern is striking the right balance between the impact of plastic pollution on the environment and the financial benefits accruing to plastic manufacturers.
Currently, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have not put in place watertight measures to manage plastic pollution. Every day, an average of 6,000 tonnes of plastic items are imported or produced in East Africa, with approximately 300 tonnes of related waste ending up in East African rivers and the Indian Ocean.
An estimated 465,000 tonnes of plastic waste is mismanaged, with 37,000 tonnes finding their way into waterways and oceans. This is equivalent to dumping 880 million plastic bottles into seas each year, with the attendant negative impacts on marine life and human health.
These challenges are also an opportunity for us to rethink plastic waste management and how we can employ lasting solutions that will save the East African marine resources.
Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have made some policy and legal interventions to deal with plastic pollution. The three countries have banned the manufacture, sale and use of plastic carrier bags. It is also important to note that Kenya and Uganda joined the Clean Seas Campaign in 2017 and 2021 respectively.
The Campaign is a global movement launched by Unep in 2017 and devoted to ending marine plastic pollution from source to sea. Tanzania has not yet joined the campaign.
Plastics recycling remains low in East Africa, hence, the need to transition the waste sector from a disposal-driven model to a more circular system encompassing recycling. A keen review of the plastic pollution strategic plans by East African countries shows that they link plastic pollution solutions with investment in infrastructure projects in a bid to also address unemployment.
To help overcome the plastic waste and pollution menace, all three East African countries should consider establishing measures that will forestall the importation or manufacture of plastic products that are not amenable to recycling.
Secondly, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania should establish strategies for frequent plastic waste collection in areas prone to plastic leakage, waste separation at the source with increased door-to-door collection, and proper disposal of waste in landfills by private collectors.
There is also a need for Kenya and Tanzania to establish an extended producer responsibility and take-back schemes and create comprehensive recycling systems that involve consumers, garbage collectors, recyclers and manufacturers in a plastic recycling value chain.
Since the problems of plastic pollution extend beyond the borders of the originator of the pollution, there is a need for the East African Community to develop and implement a policy framework for pollution control and waste management. Such a policy would harmonise standards and regulations on pollution control and waste management in the region.
Executive director, East African Wild Life Society
