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As Europeans discuss how the set climate targets can be achieved, the recalled vehicles continue to be shipped to Africa. The continent is still the junkyard of Europe – with serious consequences, not just for the climate.
According to the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), Africa’s environment is polluted by an avalanche of discarded used vehicles from industrialized countries. The United Nations is calling for an immediate rethinking of used car exports. They see dangers to the achievement of climate goals and traffic safety. “Millions of used cars, trucks and minibuses exported from Europe, Japan and the United States to developing countries contribute significantly to air pollution and hamper efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change,” said a Unep report published on Monday. .
14 million used cars exported in four years
Between 2015 and 2018, 14 million used cars were exported around the world, of which about 80 percent went to poor countries. “More than half of them went to Africa,” the study authors write. But a smaller part also goes to Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America. Many of the used vehicles are not roadworthy and cause an increase in fatal accidents, for example in countries such as Malawi, Nigeria, Zimbabwe and Burundi.
The UN is calling for the practice to be stopped immediately so as not to jeopardize the climate targets that have been set. “Industrialized countries must stop the export of vehicles that do not support environmental or safety controls and that are no longer considered suitable for circulation in the countries of origin, while importing countries must introduce stricter quality standards,” he urges Unep director Inger Andersen in the report, for which 146 countries were examined. . “We are not asking for a total ban on exports,” he stressed at a press conference. But now urgent regulations are needed.
The analysis revealed that two-thirds of the countries surveyed have only weak or very weak restrictions on the import of used cars. Therefore, the United Nations has launched an initiative to establish minimum standards for the importation of used cars. Several African countries, including Morocco, Algeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, and Mauritius, have already implemented them. The number of export vehicles shipped from Europe is estimated at around one million vehicles per year.
Most used vehicles are exported without registration.
On the German North Sea coast, just a month ago a terminal for shipping used European cars to Africa went into operation. Almost 60,000 cars will be shipped annually from Wilhelmshaven to North Africa. But the Netherlands in particular is considered a major transshipment point in Europe. An export study carried out by the local government showed that most used vehicles were no longer registered for road traffic when they were exported. Often it was discarded and unsellable rust arbors that went to Nigeria and other West African countries. They had an average age of 16 to 20 years and no longer met Euro 4 emission standards.
The Minister of the Environment, Stientje Van Veldhoven, called for a coordinated European approach and solidarity with African countries. “Scrap is scrap,” he said in a video conference, “and Europe should not export waste to Africa.” A coordinated approach with African states is necessary.
They are already moving forward. The West African confederation Ecowas has just issued new standards for used fuels and cars. The planned free trade agreement for Africa, which should pave the way for the world’s largest single market with 1.2 billion people, is seen as an opportunity to limit European exports of out-of-service cars. The auto industry, which is mainly located in South Africa, sees them as a disruptive factor in the sale of new greener cars.
“If the conditions are right, Africa’s potential for new cars is up to five million new cars a year,” says Thomas Schäfer, a former managing director of Volkswagen South Africa who recently switched to Skoda. In his capacity as president of the African Association of Automobile Manufacturers (AAAM) He was a driving force in the development of the African market The Volkswagen group, which plans to produce around 160,000 vehicles in South Africa this year, has just started a pilot project in Rwanda which aims to emphasize electric mobility in Africa.
Schäfer sees Ghana as an example in creating adequate structures. Its Environment Minister, Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, highlights: “Ghana was the first country in the region to switch to lower sulfur content fuels and this month introduced a 10-year age limit for importing used cars.”
