How Used Electronics Create Profits Abroad While Poisoning Nigerians

By Muhammad M. Ali

By the banks of River Gadabul in Maiduguri, northeast Nigeria, scrap dealers burn discarded refrigerators, air conditioners to recover copper and other valuable parts, sending smoke laden with toxic metals across nearby homes, farms and water sources.

Children swim in the river as plastic casings, wires and insulation foam smoulder nearby. Sugarcane vendors operate within metres of the fires. There are no warning signs, protective equipment or visible enforcement officers.