Orange recycles mobile phones from Africa

Burkina Faso – A first container load of used mobile phones from Burkina Faso has arrived in France as part of a partnership between mobile phone operator Orange and Emmaüs International, the charitable organisation.

Eight tonnes of mobiles were routed to Ateliers du Bocage, an Emmaüs member which also recycles the mobiles collected by Orange in France. Other containers from Africa will follow in coming months.
Orange said the initiative is in line with its commitment to recycle mobile handsets, initiated in 2005. The operator is encouraging the creation of workshops in Africa, where no organised mobile recycling is available, to collect used mobile phones and prepare them for reconditioning in Europe.
By the end of May, nearly 17.5 tonnes of material – the equivalent of 118,000 mobiles – had been collected in Burkina Faso and 2.2 tonnes in Benin.
Following the launch of the operation in Burkina Faso and Benin in February 2011, Orange opened a third workshop in Madagascar on July 4, and plans a fourth in Niger later this year. The project aims to expand a dozen countries within the next two to three years.