The app, Dr WEEE, is the invention of Essam Hashem who launched it to raise awareness of e-waste in Egypt.
AL Monitor reported that the app is aptly named after WEEE and was the brainchild of Hashem who founded Spear Ink in 2006 for the recycling of printer cartridges by remanufacturing and refurbishing.
In an interview the entrepreneur said: “Dr. WEEE is a fictive character who solves e-waste problems. It provides a solution to waste known [in Egypt] as Robabekia. The Robabekia sellers collect old, used and unwanted items from households and factories to extract precious raw materials.
“Disposal of scrap metals pollutes the environment, as some of the waste components are incinerated. Heavy metals such as copper and platinum are being wasted since scrap traders or Robabekia sellers are unaware of their real value.”
Hashem wants to collect e-waste from “households, companies, universities and schools to ensure a safe way to dispose of them and to extract precious raw materials” and he feels the app will help him to achieve this: “This is achieved through an awareness campaign on the importance of e-waste targeting universities and schools, and encouraging them to have an e-waste bin and use the Dr. WEEE app.”
The app can be downloaded to any mobile phone and there is monetary reward to those who help Hashem’s company collect e-waste and Hashem has bigger plans ahead: “I first started working with citizens, but I am seeking to cooperate and coordinate with the government. I am one of the bidders in a tender about e-waste disposal launched by the Ministry of Environment in collaboration with the Ministry of Communications.
“[In January] I obtained a license of Environmental Impact Assessment from the Ministry of Environment in the field of e-waste separation and sorting. Sorting e-waste from government offices to extract raw materials is one of our company’s objectives, in addition to improving the Egyptian economy by providing many job opportunities for young people.”
He noted that the main challenge is to overcome people’s perception of recycling and that making Dr WEEE a success would be important in gaining financing from investors both in Egypt and globally.
In 2014 a UN report cited Egypt as a “top African country with the highest e-waste generation” amounting to 37 million tonnes and that this quantity is “likely to continue due to continuous technological development”.