Wikipedia
Agbogbloshie is a former wetland and suburb of Accra, Ghana known as a destination for locally generated used electronics from the City of Accra. It has been alleged to be at the center of a legal and illegal exportation network for the environmental dumping of electronic waste (e-waste) from industrialized nations. Basel Action Network, a small NGO based in Seattle, has referred to as a "digital dumping ground", where they allege millions of tons of e-waste are processed each year in Agbogbloshie. However, repeated international studies have failed to confirm the allegations, which has been labelled an "e-waste hoax" by international reuse advocate WR3A. The most exhaustive study of the trade in used electronics, funded by UNEP and Basel Convention (Ghanaian E-Waste Assessment and Nigerian E-Waste Assessment) revealed that of 261 sea containers of electronics assessed at African ports, 91% of the material was reused.
According to statistics from the World Bank, in large cities like Accra and Lagos the majority of households have owned television and computers for decades. The UN Report "Where are WEEE in Africa" 2012 disclosed that the majority of used electronics found in African dumps had not in fact been recently imported as scrap, but was generated by these African cities. The suburb of Accra covers approximately four acres and is situated on the banks of the Korle Lagoon, northwest of Accra's Central Business District. Roughly 40,000 Ghanaians inhabit the area, most of whom are migrants from rural areas. Due to its harsh living conditions and rampant crime, the area is nicknamed "Sodom and Gomorrah".
The Basel Convention prevents the transfrontier shipment of hazardous waste from developed to less developed countries. However, the Convention specifically allows export for reuse and repair under Annex Ix, B1110. While numerous international press reports have made reference to allegations that the majority of exports to Ghana are dumped, research by the US International Trade Commission found little evidence of unprocessed junk being shipped to Africa, a finding corroborated by the UN Environmental Programme, MIT, Memorial University, Arizona State University, and other research. In 2013, the original source of the allegation blaming foreign dumping for the material found in Agbogbloshie recanted, or rather stated it had never made the claim.
Whether domestically generated by residents of Ghana or imported, concern remains over methods of waste processing - especially burning - which emit toxic chemicals into the air, land and water. Exposure is especially hazardous to children, as these toxins are known to inhibit the development of the reproductive system, the nervous system, and especially the brain. Concerns about human health and the environment of Agbogbloshie continue to be raised as the area remains heavily polluted. In the 2000s, the Ghanaian government, with new funding and loans, implemented the Korle Lagoon Ecological Restoration Project (KLERP), an environmental remediation and restoration project that will address the pollution problem by dredging the lagoon and Odaw canal to improve drainage and flooding into the ocean.