The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has shown interest in spending a part of the social obligation fund (SOF) from telecom operators for e-waste management, said BTRC chairman Md Jahurul Haque.
“According to the Telecom Act, the SOF can be used only to extend telecom facilities in remote areas. But there will be no problem if we add e-waste management to this,” he said.
However, the Act will have to be amended for this. The BTRC can take steps in this direction if the demand is made by the sector, said Jahurul Haque.
“We have to create an opportunity for e-waste management to protect the interest of the people. We need to add a provision to the Telecom Act. We need proper planning to implement this measure,” the BTRC chairman told The Independent after a recent seminar in the capital on e-waste management.
Post, telecommunications and ICT Minister Mustafa Jubber said: “I think it is important to look into the legal aspect of the matter.”
The SOF, built with contributions from telecom operators, reached Tk. 1,411.90 crore in December 2018. The BTRC introduced the fund in November 2011 when four mobile operators renewed their licences. The BTRC began the collection in 2011, while the rule was finalised in 2015.
According to the Bangladesh Mobile Phone Importers' Association (BMPIA), around 35 million phones end up as e-waste every year in the country. Nearly 45 million mobile phone batteries are annually added to the existing e-waste.
There are three points where e-waste is generated—the factory level (as Bangladesh moves into manufacturing, wastage will occur), the service centre level (about 6 per cent of the phones are repaired or parts replaced every year) and the consumer level.
The director general of the Department of Environment (DoE), Sultan Ahmed, said in addition to the mobile phones, the country also use about seven lakh computers, 29 lakh television sets, 2.55 crore CFL bulbs, 40 lakh fans, 1.55 lakh refrigerators, and about 95,000 air conditioners and 30,000 deep freezers annually. These contribute to the volume of e-waste in the country.
The department concerned has already developed a draft regulation for e-waste management in line with the existing Environment Conservation Act of the country, he added.