Round-up of handhelds in Ivory Coast

Africa – Owing to the ever-steeper demand for electronic gadgets, most notably mobile phones, telecoms provider Orange is on a mission to establish new collection centres for handhelds across Africa, with one unveiled last week in Ivory Coast.

Claiming that the continent is home to some 500 million mobile phones, Orange has partnered with social group Emmaüs International to build five e-scrap facilities in Africa over the last four years. Through these sites, more than 140 tonnes of discarded mobile phones have been exported to France since 2010 for recycling by Morphosis.

Orange has also organised an annual collection event in France which specifically targets mobile phones, batteries and chargers, with the profits going towards funding Emmaüs International′s sustainable projects in Africa.

The telecom giant′s collection scheme went live in March 2010, firstly in Burkina Faso. Other plants have since been added in Madagascar, Niger and Benin.

For more infromation, visit: www.orange.com