Knowledge, attitude, and practices of electronic waste management amongst consumers in Seeta parish, Mukono district.

Abstract

Background: Electronic waste (E-waste) remains one of the fastest-growing solid waste categories in the world today. Like other developing places in Africa, particularly in Uganda, Seeta parish Mukono is faced with the challenge of e-waste management. Most of the e-wastes have been left in the hands of the informal sector workers who use inappropriate approaches to manage e-waste. Attempts have been made to regulate and control e-wastes by the government of Uganda through regulatory frameworks but to no effect. There is currently limited information on the level of knowledge, attitudes, practices, and willingness of consumers to participate in e-waste management which was the focus of this study. Methodology: This was a cross-sectional study design which employed quantitative data collection methods. A total of 373 respondents were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire which was uploaded on the KoboCollect app. Data was then exported to Stata version14 for analysis. Results of the univariate analysis were summarized in percentages and frequencies and presented either in tables, graphs, or pie charts. Results: Majority of the respondents (275/373, 73.7%) and (274/373, 73.5%) had poor knowledge and moderate attitudes respectively. On disposal practices, about three quarters (255/344, 74.6%) preferred to keep their e-wastes in the house. Mobile phones (213/344, 61.7%) and radios (174/344,50.4%) were the most owned e-wastes. Nearly all respondents (369/373, 99.0%) admitted to not wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) while handling e-wastes and more than half (132/224, 58.9%) were unwilling to dispose of their e-wastes. Conclusion: Most respondents had poor knowledge and moderate attitudes towards e-waste management. Majority of the respondents practiced poor e-waste management practices like keeping in the house, and mixing with other general wastes. Most of them were also unwilling to dispose of their e-wastes preferring to keep in the house instead.