The e-waste market is a vast and growing one, estimated at about 50 million tonnes a year, according to a UNEP report.

Fueled by the world’s insatiable desire for all electronic devices, the huge global growth in such products has led to the creation of new e-dumps across the developing world.

Much of it is dumped in Ghana and Nigeria where, without proper regulation or health controls, pieces can be extracted and recycled by unemployed youths.

The report on UNEP and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime also states that organised crime cartels, already active in drug smuggling in the region, were moving into the lucrative e-waste trade.

The question though is why? In this article Maryke Foulds, takes a look at why the e-waste market is growing so rapidly, why it’s drawn the attention of crime cartels and what the implications are for the cities of Africa and Latin America, where the smell and blend of burning rubber and chemicals, pinpoints these waste sites.

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