One of the world's largest electronics Dumpsite is located on the outskirts of Accra (Ghana) and it is named "Hell on Earth". Thousands of pieces of all kinds of electronics and other metal pieces of waste, which are sent from Western countries to Africa, are collected in a dumpsite called Agbogbloshie. Ten thousand workers are working in extremely poor conditions to recycle accumulated wastes. Exposure of these people to toxins puts their health at serious risk and danger.

Nevertheless, in 1989, Europe by signing the Basel Convention on The Control of Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal, has tried to prevent the export of electronic wastes to other countries, especially developing countries. But the rules of this convention have been bypassed by exporting a large number of wastes to Africa as recyclable and reusable materials.

Most of these active people in this field are Ghanaian immigrants living in Europe and are taking advantage of their connections in Ghana to start a family business. In an action taken by one of the Basel Action Network (BAN) environmentalists in 2019, 314 trackers were embedded in Europe's electronic waste. Examination of the trackers showed that these wastes were sent to Africa from Britain, Spain, Italy, Ireland, Denmark, and Germany, which, along with other evidence from the United Nations, indicates the formation of organized crime in this area. The UK is one of the European countries with the highest exports of these wastes, but its main destinations are Nigeria, Tanzania, and Pakistan.

 According to the Basel Action Network statistics, 80 percent of what is sent to Africa from Europe is illegal if it is not defined as second-hand goods, and based on the laws of the exporting and importing countries, sending them is prohibited. According to Ghana’s port officials, 75% of the goods that are sent to these ports have the title of second-hand goods so the work seems to be legal. The European Union considers that the definition of "waste" does not apply to goods in need of "repair" and such goods are an exception to this rule. The union included this issue in the Basel Guideline Transboundary Movement of electronic Waste, but the Basel Action Network, due to the contradiction between this issue and the Basel guidelines, strongly opposes this action. It is worth mentioning that the European Union introduced such a concept into the instruction.

International POPs Elimination Network (IPEN) has done extensive researches in this field and published its results in the form of detailed and ample reports. These reports scientifically show how poor control of elimination of European e-wastes disrupts Africa's food chain; especially the west of the continent and it leads the dioxin levels to increase in the region's food. Some projects have been implemented with the support of European countries, especially Germany, for reducing the dangers of this method of elimination and the replacement of new methods.

In addition to Ghana, which is a major destination for European e-waste, these materials are also shipped to Nigeria, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Tanzania, and Thailand. The European Union has chosen the word "leakage" to describe the illegal export of e-waste. The presence of African immigrants in Europe has led to the formation of mafia networks such as the e-wastes trade between Europe and Africa which, itself, is one of the consequences of the presence of immigrants in Europe. On the other hand, the contradiction of these actions with the Basel Convention, of which Europe is the standard-bearer, shows the European Union’s inefficiency in the implementation of this convention. These factors cause Europe to lose its pivotal role in supporting developing countries against electronic wastes. The European Commission stated in 2018 stating that the law enforcement on the export of hazardous electronic devices is Europe’s priority in 2020-2018, and the entry of people into this trade is the entry into related crimes that will be combated against. As a result, the formation of Agbogbloshie, the European Union has not only failed to implement the Basel Convention, but also has failed to achieve the 2018-2020 priority.  On the other hand, how have the immigrants succeeded to bypass European Union rules with such organized trades, Europe ignores these actions and on the other hand, it puts West Africa’s environment in danger.

(The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of the IPIS)