News
Sunday, May 10, 2015
Uganda divorces plastic bags
KAMPALA, Uganda - It was with both the deepest sadness and gladness, that Uganda finally announced it has divorced the small micron polythene bag as a partner for general packaging material.
The reason cited is irreconcilable differences and in business that does not make for a continued viable venture.
In mid-April, the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) banned the use of these popular lightweight bags with immediate effect. The ban covers selling, manufacture and importation.
Considering the past failures of enforcing similar bans since 2007, many retailers at first, did not take it too seriously until mean-looking NEMA officials started knocking on their doors.
A momentous love story is coming to an end. It will take sometime to absorb and adjust to new realities, but we can still cherish plenty of good memories. The polythene bag made life so easy!
Uganda’s love affair with the polythene bag (kaveera and buveera in plural), dates back to the late 1980s.
It was love at first sight. It gradually developed into a passionate relationship that destroyed anyone who came in between them and especially the surrounding environment.
As a fast moving consumer product, the kaveera has few equals. That is why it is not hard to understand how this item became so bewitching. Nor for that matter, should we forget that Uganda is the only country suitably smitten.
For the wholsaler, the polythene bag is wonderfully compact. Easy to transport and store. For retailers, it is cheap and constitutes a bonus by giving extra value to the customer when handed out for free. Almost every purchase comes with at least one.
According to the Earth Policy Institute, worldwide, a trillion single-use plastic bags are used each year. Broken down further that means nearly two million are given out each minute.
In the United States alone, more than 100 billion plastic bags are used each year. That is 300 bags per person.
Recently the European Commission revealed that an average European citizen currently uses 200 plastic disposable bags per year, which results in 100 billion plastic bags per year in total across the EU.
Policymakers in Brussels now want to slash use to 90 bags per person annually.
Figures for Africa and specifically for Uganda are not forthcoming. However without doubt the kaveera’s sexy sheen has dazzled us with its many uses and blinded us to its destructive qualities.
The problem of disposing them has reached epic proportions. Plastic bags are non-biodegradable.
How do you get rid of something that under normal circumstances takes 500 years to completely decompose?
Secondly, plastic bags are made of various chemicals which are mainly toxic and cause soils to slowly suffocate. Not good for an agriculture-based economy.
Truth of the matter, these bags have made fools of us all. Decisive action had to be taken less we end up buried under them.
The first step is personal, but it is also the most crucial. It begins with each and every one of us making a choice not to use these bags.
Unfortunately, the issue of imposing a ban in Uganda had become a ping-pong game between business interests at one end and the environment lobby on the other.
In the middle, the government has too frequently acted as a dishonest broker. Its wavering on enforcing the ban has hurt both sides.
Rwanda was the first African country to turn its back on the kaveera charms. It issued an outright ban 10 years ago. Today, Kigali is universally described as spotlessly clean.
In comparison, a stroll through downtown Kampala on a windy day makes you think of polythene paradise.
It means being assaulted by both dust and discarded plastic bags in equal measure. Tattered polythene pieces dance before your eyes, as if showing off their impunity.
The same bags clog city storm water drainage systems and keep circulating the dust during dry spells, but worsen floods when it rains heavily.
This is the leading factor that makes Kampala look so shabby. And because self discipline in disposing of trash frequently eludes us, a blanket ban is probably the best option rather than higher taxes on the bags.
Several thousands of small businesses will feel the full brunt of the kaveera ban. Naturally, the owners feel frustrated at this additional cost to their meagre working capital.
This is why its vital that NEMA spends time and money to explain why this ban is necessary.
On the other hand, this an opportunity for numerous enterprises run by young people to scale up their paper bag production and enjoy economies of scale.
Another important consideration, is that we will be rid of those Predator type missiles, dubbed ‘flying toilets’, that cascade over many Kampala suburbs during the night.
By Mulinde Musoke, Sunday, May 10th, 2015