The open burning of waste takes place worldwide, particularly in low- and middle-income countries where there is a lack of waste management infrastructure. This was a key finding of the Engineering X Global Review on Safer End of Engineered Life which warned that open burning of solid waste is damaging the health of “tens of millions” of people worldwide but a lack of data means that the true scale of the problem is unknown and more research is urgently needed.
Our programme
To inform the direction of our programme, Engineering X commissioned the Global Review on Safer End of Engineered Life led by the University of Leeds. This looked at what happens to consumer goods and other engineered products at the end of their useful life. This research identified the harm caused by open burning and called for urgent action to tackle this neglected issue.
Risks and benefits
The review identified the multiple and multidisciplinary nature of the risks posed to human health and the environment from the uncontrolled burning of waste such as the negative impact on:
- informal waste workers and vulnerable populations (for example, children, older people, pregnant women),
- the pollution of land, air and water
It also concluded that there are several (perceived) benefits of burning waste. For example, burning occurs to ‘get rid’ of accumulated waste or in the form of regular burning as an accepted practice.
Following this evidence gathering, we sought to raise the issue of open burning on the global agenda and catalyse action around this long-neglected issue.
Children carry water next to smouldering waste in Douala, Cameroon; ©WasteAid
Upcoming activities
Our advocacy work in partnership with others, saw the open burning of waste raised on the global agenda for the first time in a side event at COP26 in Glasgow. Since then the visibility and tackling of the challenge has increased rapidly. It was included in the UNEP Medium Term strategy and a resolution was signed by 54 African Environment Ministers to eliminate the open burning of waste in Africa by 2040.
1. African Ministerial Conference on Environment (AMCEN) | 1-7September 2024
2. Open Burning of Waste workshop | 15 September 2024
3. International Solid Waste Association (ISWA)World Congress | 15-18 September 2024
4. Webinar: Improving Urban Air Quality through Sustainable Waste Management in Cities of Africa | 28 August 2024
How to get involved:
- Let us know if you are engaging at African Ministerial Conference on Environment or ISWA World Congress
- Attend the side session at the Congress on 18 September
- Attend the webinar
African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN)
Summary: Following the landmark resolution signed by 54 African Ministers in 2022, the Multi Stakeholder Partnership to end open burning of waste was established to implement the resolution. As part of this initiative, a key partner, Climate and Clean Air Coalition committed $1.3m towards transformative action in the waste sector. This project, led by Engineering X, in consortium with International Solid Waste Association, Institute of Global Environment Strategies, Practical Action and UN Habitat, are delivering a project to create the enabling conditions to change behaviours, policy and practice to end open burning of waste in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
As part of engagement in the Africa regional roadmap, and to report to AMCEN on progress towards the resolution, we will be engaging at the 10th session of AMCEN.
Date: 1 - 7 September 2024
Location: Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire
Open Burning of Waste workshop
This workshop, held in partnership with International Solid Waste Association, will bring together multi sector stakeholders who are working in various ways to tackle the open burning of waste globally which has catastrophic effects on human health and the environment. It will convene these key partners to ask the question: how has the needle moved towards ending open burning of waste over the past 5 years?
This workshop builds on existing political momentum, seen through the African Ministerial Conference on Environment resolution to end open burning in Africa by 2040, as well commitment to develop regional roadmaps in Africa, Asia and Latin America. It provides an opportunity for the community to come together in person to discuss changes seen in the sector and inform the levers that still need to be leveraged.
Date: 15 September 2024
Location: Cape Town, South Africa
International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) World Congress session | Eliminating the Open Burning of Waste: Intra-regional exchange for guiding city level action in Africa
This session will focus on the Africa roadmap. This roadmap is being developed as a pathway to implementation of the AMCEN resolution passed in 2022 where African States committed to eliminating open burning of waste by 2040. This political backing at the Africa-wide level provides a vital platform for action. However, barriers remain on the road to achieving the goal of the resolution.
In the first part of this session, we will present initial findings on the situation across Africa, and about progress towards shaping the regional roadmap. We have carried out new analysis and received feedback from across the continent. We will hear from speakers from regional, and city level perspectives. This will be followed by a panel discussion perspective from Asia to engage in intraregional knowledge exchange, sharing experiences to provide advice for those shaping the Africa regional roadmap and city level action plans. We will wrap up by drawing this together at the global level and discussing our next steps.
Date: 18 September 2024
Time: 14.10 - 15.10
Location: CTICC, Cape Town, South Africa
You can find the full ISWA World Congress programme here
Improving urban air quality through sustainable waste management in cities of Africa
International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies, observed on 7th September 2024, under the theme "Invest in #CleanAirNow," highlights the critical need for stronger partnerships, increased investment, and shared responsibility in combating air pollution. In commemoration of this event, UNEP will host an online event focused on enhancing urban air quality through sustainable waste management in African cities. This webinar will convene a diverse group of stakeholders, including Multi-Stakeholder Partnership (MSP) members from across Africa, state and non-state actors, CCT networks, CCAC partners, AMCEN, and global audiences dedicated to addressing the urgent issue of air quality in urban settings.
Date: 28 August 2024
Time: 11.00 – 12.30 (EAT)
Location: online - get the link to join here
Current projects
Find out more about our collaboration with the Climate and Clean Air Fund on developing regional roadmaps to increase action and awareness to end open burning in Africa, Asia and Latin America & the Caribbean here.
Our work
Join our community
Building on the two global workshops we held in 2021, our community continues to build and share knowledge through an online Community of Practice, For information about the workshops read on or to contribute to the conversation around Open burning waste join our linkedin group.
Workshop outcomes 2021
In 2021 115 participants from more than 23 countries attended workshops on open burning waste. These were hosted by the Engineering X open burning theme leads, Dr Mansoor Ali and Dr Terry Tudor, and run in partnership with our partners the International Solid Waste Association. The aim was to contextualise and build upon the findings from the Global Review, as well as provide recommendations for the future of our work in this area.
Participants identified key reasons and drivers for change as:
Reason: open burning was mainly due to poor waste management systems and inadequate disposal sites. The key drivers for change were noted as:
Changes needed: improving waste management systems; providing training; enforcing legislation and initiatives; developing recycling initiatives; and raising safety standards.
It was also recommended that the link between open burning of waste and climate change be emphasised as a way to move the issue higher up the global agenda.
For more information on workshop resources and outputs, visit the resources page.