Bamako Convention on hazardous waste being reviewed

African Ministers from 25 countries, UN officials representatives of Civil Society Organisations (CSO's), as well as the private sector are meeting in Abidjan to find measures of addressing the Importation and Transportation of hazardous waste onto the continent. 

A Convention to that effect known as the Bamako Convention is being reviewed after two decades of coming into force. 

The Bamako convention, became necessary following the failure of the Basel Convention to prohibit trade of hazardous waste to Less Developed Countries, and from the realization that many developed countries were exporting toxic waste to Africa. 

This impression was strenghten by several prominent cases. One particular case being the dumping of toxic waste into Nigeria Port of Koko in 1998 by Italian companies. 

The waste claimed to be a fertilizer to help farmers, ended by killing some residents and displacing about 500 people. 

It is against this background that African Countries during their OAU meeting in Bamako, Mali in 1991 established the convention to ban the dumping and trans-boundary transportation of hazardous waste. 

As of now 25 out of the 54 African Countries have ratified the convention while 17 including Ghana have signed. 

At the end of the three day conference, of the COP 2 of the convention, parties affirmed their commitment to secure a total ban of import of hazardous waste to Africa. 

They also affirmed the decision to take concrete actions for effective implementations of adopted decisions of past and present conferences. 

The Ivorian Minister for Sanitation, Environment and Sustainable Development, Anne Desiree Oulutto called for support and resources from parties in protecting the health of people and also the environment. 

The Regional Director of UNEP, Juliette Koudenoukpo said the commitment by the countries to a free- pollution Africa through the Bamako Convention, will reinforce the Continent's will to the global chemical agenda, the Agenda 2063 as well as the Sustainable Development Goals.

Story by Joyce Gyekye

 
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