The National Waste Management Center "Mwan" has revealed that the volume of electronic waste in the Kingdom reached 595 thousand tons in 2022, according to a comprehensive study conducted by the center to determine the total electronic waste in the Kingdom. It is expected that the potentials for transformation will contribute to the sector by around 650 billion Saudi riyals to the national GDP by 2040.

Omar AlShaibani, the Executive Director of 'Ertiqa' Association, explained that the 'Reduce It with Us' initiative aims to involve both the government and private sectors in corporate social responsibility to contribute to the Kingdom's Vision 2030. This is achieved by encouraging the donation of computers and electronic devices. 'Ertiqa' works on reusing and rehabilitating suitable devices and donating them to social and educational institutions. It was also mentioned that recycling non-suitable devices contributes to reducing carbon emissions. 'Ertiqa' received 159,900 devices, of which 75,100 were rehabilitated, and 72,200 were recycled. The beneficiaries totaled 2,700 entities, with 41% in the education sector and 59% in the charitable sector. Students made up 38% of the beneficiaries, with 38% for computer labs and 24% for administrative offices.

The goals of the 'Reduce It with Us' initiative include promoting a culture of preserving digital resources, raising awareness of best practices in disposing of electronic devices, preserving the environment, and reducing carbon emissions by rehabilitating and recycling electronic devices. The initiative aims to reduce 5 million kilograms of carbon emissions and collect 150,000 electronic pieces. The campaign, launched on June 5th last year on World Environment Day, managed to collect over 64,000 electronic pieces, equivalent to a reduction of 2.2 million kilograms of carbon emissions.

The percentage of electronic waste collected and properly recycled worldwide is 17.4%. It is expected that the volume of electronic waste will grow to 74.7 million tons annually by 2032. The Kingdom is considered one of the largest producers of electronic waste among the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.

Source: https://maaal.com/?p=545257