Kenyans will soon start getting payment from government for their old electronics devices such as computer, phones, radios and other electronic items gathering dust in their homes.

The draft National E-waste Management Strategy 2019 proposes cash incentives for consumers as well as tax exemptions for companies that help collect and manage the waste.

In a report by The Standard, the government will require each of the 47 counties to have at least ten centres for collecting the waste and also establish recycling plants in the six economic zones across the country.

“The government will partner with private firms through Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) to build robust and sustainable infrastructure to facilitate an environmentally friendly e-waste management system and provide incentives for consumers to dispose of their electronic waste,” read the draft.

“Kenya generates 11,400 tonnes from refrigerators, 2,800 from TVs, 2,500 from personal computers, 500 from printers and 150 from mobile phones,” read the report.

The figure is estimated to have gone high following importation of cheap electronic items in the country such as phones and computers.

However, implementation of the plan will have to wait until medium-term, with the government set to establish e-waste factories in 2022 and the e-waste fund in 2023.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Environment and Forestry has scheduled a national validation workshop that will be held at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre in May to collect stakeholder views on the policy.