Awareness And Impact Of Intellectual Property Rights Among E-Waste Recyclers In Ghana

Rapid development in technology and the fast improvement in people living conditions lead to the fastest growing solid waste---waste electrical and electronic equipment(WEEE),Electronic waste or e-waste,which could seriously threat the eco-environment and human health if they were treated improperly.Recycle is considered as the best way for e-waste management and disposal.However,e-waste recycle is limited because of intellectual property rights(IPRs).In this study,the awareness of Intellectual property rights among e-waste recyclers and the impact of IPRs on e-waste recycling in Ghana is discussed by literature review,field interview and data analysis.E-waste recyclers in Ghana are mainly male,most of them had obtained basic education.They are unaware of the patent laws of Ghana,not to mention IPRs of e-waste.Information on IPRs was sourced mainly from the Media and Online platforms.E-waste recycling in Ghana is predominantly informal in nature.E-waste in Ghana is mainly mobile phones,refrigerators,television set and computers and the activities involved include scavenging,sorting,repair and refurbishment,and burning to obtain valuable products.IPRs do impact e-waste recycling in a number of ways including the inability to obtain spare parts of some products for repair and refurbishment purposes.A coordination among e-waste recyclers in one of the recommendations suggested to ensure a conflict free e-waste recycling in Ghana.The results of this research could help the world understand e-waste recycling in Ghana and improve the awareness of Ghana people on IPRs as well as the international e-waste management.