![Distribution of plastic consumption in Nigeria in 2017 (source: [73]).](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/383940599/figure/fig1/AS:11431281277412983@1726045038417/Distribution-of-plastic-consumption-in-Nigeria-in-2017-source-73_Q320.jpg)
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Citation: Ezeudu, O.B.; Tenebe, I.T.;
Ujah, C.O. Status of Production,
Consumption, and End-of-Life Waste
Management of Plastic and Plastic
Products in Nigeria: Prospects for
Circular Plastics Economy.
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900. https://
doi.org/10.3390/su16187900
Academic Editor: Xiaowei Li
Received: 3 August 2024
Revised: 1 September 2024
Accepted: 3 September 2024
Published: 10 September 2024
Copyright: © 2024 by the authors.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
This article is an open access article
distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/
4.0/).
sustainability
Review
Status of Production, Consumption, and End-of-Life Waste
Management of Plastic and Plastic Products in Nigeria: Prospects
for Circular Plastics Economy
Obiora B. Ezeudu 1, 2, *, Imokhai T. Tenebe 3,4 and Chika O. Ujah 5
1Department of Civil Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada
2Centre for Environmental Management and Control, University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus,
Enugu 410001, Nigeria
3Mineta Transportation Institute, San Jose State University, San Jose, CA 95192, USA
4University of Chicago Booth School of Business, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
5
Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Technology, University of Johannesburg, P.O. Box 524,
Johannesburg 2006, South Africa; omega.ujah@gmail.com
*Correspondence: obiezeudu@yahoo.com
Abstract: This study is motivated by the need to understand and proffer sustainable circular economy
solutions to the persistent challenges associated with plastic waste management in Nigeria. Despite
the emerging awareness and increased number of studies conducted on plastic and plastic products
in Nigeria, the challenges and opportunities associated with their production, consumption, and
post-consumption management are still poorly understood. Besides the large quantity of plastic
and plastic products produced locally in Nigeria, a substantial quantity of these products in various
forms and polymer types also comes into the country through importation. This results in a high
consumption rate and, by extension, a huge volume of plastic waste generated daily exceeding the
capacity and ability of the authorities to manage. In this work, we reviewed the available literature to
analyze the status of the production, importation, consumption, and post-consumption management
of plastic waste in Nigeria. It is estimated that out of 27.3 million tonnes of municipal solid waste
currently generated in Nigeria’s urban cities per annum about 11.2 million tonnes is collected, of
which about 1.1 million tonnes is plastics. It is further projected that by 2040, about 40.5 million
tonnes of municipal solid waste will be generated, and only about 1.6 million tonnes of the plastic
component will be collected for disposal. Based on the outcome of the analysis, the current study
further suggested how adopting circular economy principles can help mitigate the impact of plastic
waste on Nigerian society.
Keywords: plastic waste; Nigeria; waste management; circular economy; waste disposal
1. Introduction
Plastic as a consumer product has become an important part of our everyday life.
It has found a broad application in almost all areas of human endeavor and forms a
critical component in most finished consumer products. Basic household items, commercial
products, and industrial equipment usually have parts and components made of plastic.
For instance, the hardware part of electronic and electrical gadgets, hand rests of furniture,
handles of kitchen utensils, waterproof packaging of most fast-moving consumer products,
etc., are common applications of plastics. Plastics have several exceptional qualities which
include (i) high durability which makes them desirable for packaging, industrial use,
medical equipment, and so much more; (ii) cost effectiveness which makes them easy
to produce and readily available; and (iii) high flexibility which makes them easy to be
fashioned into a variety of shapes and forms [
1
]. However, the greatest documented
application of plastic and plastic products is in packaging, especially in single disposable
usage [2,3].
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16187900 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 2 of 25
At the global level, it is estimated that about 8300 million metric tons (Mt) of virgin
plastics may have been produced since the 1950s [
2
]. The production of plastics was
predicted to be 260 million metric tonnes worldwide in 2007 [
4
]. This projection rose to
359 million tons in 2018 and 400.3 million tons in 2022 [
5
,
6
]. Because they mainly come
as single-use items and packaging materials, about 50% of plastic products fall into the
disposable product category [
7
]. As a result, the pace at which end-of-life plastic waste
streams are generated has increased. About 6300 Mt of plastic waste may have been
generated as of 2015, of which only 9% may have been recycled and 12% incinerated,
while the remaining 79% is considered to have been accumulated in landfills or the natural
environment [
2
]. It is further projected that following the current trend in production and
consumption, about 12,000 Mt of plastic waste will be in landfills or the natural environment
by 2050.
Because of its increased presence in municipal solid waste and the difficulties asso-
ciated with its management, treatment, and disposal, plastic waste material has received
special attention. It has become a global menace adversely impacting the three major
components of the environment—air, water, and land. These adverse impacts in a broad
sense have direct and indirect implications on the three pillars of sustainable development
which include social equity, economic prosperity, and environmental protection. As a
result of its detrimental effects on marine and coastal habitats, marine litter has gained
international and regional attention as a pressing environmental issue [
8
,
9
]. This is one of
the most significant negative effects of plastic production and consumption worldwide.
Although many studies in the literature have discussed the challenges of and solutions
to the production, consumption, and end-of-life management of plastic waste, only a
few studies have explored the developing countries’ perspectives [
10
–
14
]. In developing
countries, to be able to proffer circular economy solutions to plastic waste management
problems, there is a need to study and understand the peculiarities associated with each
country’s and society’s scenarios. This is essential since circular economy solutions are
designed and implemented according to context simply because societies differ along
socioeconomic, political, geographical, and even cultural particularities [
15
,
16
]. Against
this backdrop, recent studies have analyzed the plastic waste management challenges in
some developing locations and proffered a circular economy solution according to the
prevailing information obtained from these locations [14,17–19].
In Nigeria, solid waste management has been a serious environmental challenge due
to several factors such as inadequate resources, lack of technical capacity, poor policy
regimes, absence of information/data, and ineffective institutions [
20
–
23
]. These challenges
were recently complicated by the additional burden that comes with a continuous increase
in the generation of plastic waste and other waste variants that require special management
techniques, such as e-waste. None of the available studies on solid waste characterization
in Nigeria have failed to highlight a significant plastic component. Studies have also shown
that rivers are major sources of marine litter, and Nigeria ranks ninth in the global plastic
marine litter release [
24
]. It has also been reported that more than 23,400,000 tons of plastics
entered the Nigerian technosphere between 1996 and 2014 with only less than 12% of
the resulting waste being recycled [
9
]. All these factors point to the need for sustainable
solutions to the plastic pollution problems in Nigeria.
A growing body of literature has discussed the plastic waste challenges in Nigeria
from different perspectives. For instance, a baseline study has tried to quantify the amount
of plastic imported into Nigeria within a given period [
9
]. Many other scholars focused on
discussing the challenges of plastic waste in Nigeria while suggesting specialized solutions.
Some of the solutions suggested include formulating sustainable regulatory policies by the
government [
25
,
26
]; raising awareness and quantifying the extent and presence of micro-
and nanoplastics in the coastal environment [
27
]; socially friendly approaches to plastic
waste management [
28
]; stakeholder education, polymer substitution, tax, and incentives
to support the sustainability of life below water [
29
]; using plastic waste for electricity
generation [
30
,
31
]; and adopting diverse recycling alternatives [
3
,
7
]. Some other authors
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 3 of 25
focused on policy arguments proposing legislative measures [
32
]. There are also works
discussing the menace of microplastic pollution in Nigeria [33,34].
However, none of the available studies have studied plastic waste management in
Nigeria in the context of the circular economy or with the aim of proffering circular economy
solutions. Since it addresses the issue of the excessive extraction of virgin resources and
related pollution, the circular economy framework for plastic waste management, which
covers every stage of the value chain, is thought to be one of the best ways to mitigate
the effects of plastic pollution [
35
]. In the current study, the entire plastic management
landscape in Nigeria is discussed with the aim of proffering circular economy solutions.
The current study is unique as it reviews in detail the status of the production, importation,
consumption, and end of life waste management of plastics. The institutional landscapes
and policy framework related to Nigeria’s management of plastic waste are also informa-
tively highlighted. The current work explains why and how circular economy concepts
should be adopted and implemented as viable options for the efficient management of
plastic waste in Nigeria.
2. Motivation for the Rising Global Advocacy for Effective Plastic Waste Management
The call for global actions towards achieving sustainable development has gathered
traction in recent times, and part of this call centers on a reduction in the rate of conversion
and utilization of non-renewable resources. Fossil fuels are an example of these non-
renewable resources. Of all the fossil fuels processed globally, about 6% are used in the
production of plastics [
36
]. To provide energy for their production, an additional 3–4% are
also consumed [4].
Besides crude oil, other non-renewable energy sources such as coal and gas are used in
plastic production [37]. Because of their short lifespan facilitated by single-use disposable
items, the production and consumption of plastic and plastic products have continued to
increase; hence, there has been an increase in the rate of utilization of these non-renewable
resources. Consequently, the presence of plastic in municipal solid waste has also continued
to increase. In exact terms, the World Bank report of 2018 shows that about 12% of municipal
solid waste generated globally is plastic, while about 242 million tons of plastic waste
was produced globally in 2016 [
38
]. The majority of the present worldwide approach to
managing these wastes still adheres to a linear economic model, indicating an unsustainable
course that puts natural resources at risk of depletion. Because of the non-biodegradable
nature of petroleum-based plastic, when it accumulates in the environment, it can take
hundreds or even a thousand years to degrade [
4
], having detrimental impacts on the
components of the environment—air, water, and land—in various ways. In landfills, plastic
waste streams occupy physical spaces and cause the landfill to get quickly filled up, thereby
shortening its lifespan. When burnt, plastic discharges dangerous pollutants that can
negatively impact public health. In developing/underdeveloped global regions where
plastic wastes are indiscriminately disposed of due to poor waste management services,
they can clog the waterways leading to flooding and soil erosion.
Depending on local environmental conditions, such as the exposure to UV light, oxy-
gen availability, and temperature, even degradable plastics may remain in the environment
for longer [
39
]. The right microbes must be present for plastic to decompose. As a result,
degradation rates differ significantly between terrestrial and marine habitats as well as
landfills [
40
]. A plastic object will eventually break down into smaller pieces of plastic
debris due to weathering, but the polymer itself may not break down in a considerable
amount of time [
4
,
41
]. This plastic debris can get into waterbodies, causing marine litter. A
growing body of scholarly research indicates that, in the absence of action, the quantity of
plastic debris entering the ocean will triple by 2025 [
24
]. According to the Ellen MacArthur
Foundation [
42
], by 2050, there will be more plastic in the oceans than fish by weight if the
current linear (“take–make–use–dispose”) economic paradigm persists.
In light of these developments, plastic waste is currently seen as a significant issue
for solid waste management that is considered a top priority in the political agenda world-
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 4 of 25
wide [
43
]. A number of targets related to waste and resource management are included
in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Agenda, which was adopted by 193 UN
member states in September 2015 [
44
]. These targets have the potential to either directly
or indirectly improve sustainable waste and resource management [
45
]. Four Sustainable
Development Goals specifically aim to prevent, reduce, and promote the management of
plastic waste, either directly or indirectly. They include Goal 6—clean water and sanitation;
Goal 11—sustainable communities and cities; Goal 12—responsible consumption and pro-
duction; and Goal 14—life below water [
14
,
18
]. Within the SDGs, the specific targets that
deal with plastic waste, especially in the context of developing countries, include (i) Target
5 of SDG 12—supporting the developing countries to substantially reduce waste generation
through prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse; (ii) Target 1 of SDG 14—the conser-
vation and sustainable use of the oceans, seas, and marine resources; (iii) Target 6 of SDG
11—paying special attention to municipal solid waste; and (iv) Target 3 of SGD 6—reducing
pollution, eliminating dumping, and minimizing release of hazardous materials [46,47].
The United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-2) adopted resolution 2/11 in 2016
in response to the growing threat of plastic waste. The resolution called for an evaluation
of the efficacy of pertinent national, subregional, and international governance strategies to
combat marine plastic debris and microplastics [
48
]. A third assembly session (UNEA-3) in
2017 recognized the need for improved waste management strategies to address the prob-
lem of marine litter. These strategies should be based on cooperative partnerships between
governments, regional organizations, the private sector—particularly important business
players—civil society, non-governmental organizations, and all pertinent international and
regional conventions and organizations [49].
3. Nigeria’s Waste Management Challenges and Circular Economy Solution
3.1. The Background to the Nigerian Waste Management Challenges
In Nigeria, there are no officially available data on waste generation, collection, com-
position, and disposal. The waste management policies in Nigeria before 1999 were mainly
articulated with the sole aim of achieving the collection and disposal of waste with no
due consideration to the other essential elements of waste management such as waste
characterization, waste data collection, waste recycling, and even resource recovery [
20
,
22
].
Consequently, it was difficult to assess the effectiveness and progress of solid waste man-
agement in Nigeria during this time. With the return of democracy to the country in 1999,
the country witnessed economic prosperity that resulted in rapid urbanization, an increase
in socioeconomic activities, and the resultant rise in the quantity of solid waste generated
in the cities across the country.
As of 2019, the estimated quantity of solid waste generated by 106 million people
living in urban areas in Nigeria was 66,826 tonnes per day (TPD). This value was projected
to hit 125,473 TPD by 2040 with an urban population of 199 million [
22
]. The country’s
waste collection rate has not been officially determined due to the unavailability of data [
50
].
World Bank studies of 2012, however, suggest that for African low-income countries such
as Nigeria, the waste collection rate is between 41% and 46%, which is projected to rise to
about 60% by 2025 [
51
]. The waste collection services are largely limited to the visible areas
within the urban center. The non-visible areas such as shanties, slums, and ghettos are not
usually included in the waste collection services. There are no waste management services
in rural areas in most African nations including Nigeria [
22
,
38
]. Waste segregation/sorting
at the source point of generation is not widely practiced in Nigeria, as there is no effective
legislature or policy to that effect [
52
]. As a result, solid waste is usually collected from
households, offices, and establishments as an unsorted mix. The only effort at solid waste
separation/segregation in Nigeria often occurs at the dumpsites or landfills, and it is often
undertaken by informal waste pickers [53].
Self-delivery to the community bin is the dominant method of waste collection. How-
ever, house-to-house collections are reported in some high-income areas in places across
the country [
54
]. Like other underdeveloped countries, the dominant methods of waste
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 5 of 25
disposal are still open burning, open dumping, and indiscriminate disposal at water bodies
with limited availability of landfill facilities [
23
]. Nigeria still has no formal waste recycling
program, and previous efforts to establish a formal waste recycling scheme were unsuccess-
ful [
53
,
55
]. The prevalent method of waste recycling is through the informal waste sector. It
has been recommended that these scavengers’ unofficial waste recycling activities be safely
included in the circular economy programs in Nigeria and other developing countries, even
though they pose a risk to the health of the workers and the local population living close to
the operation sites [
15
,
56
]. Waste landfilling in Nigeria is still not properly developed, as
many major urban cities do not have landfills and hence practice open dumping [
21
,
23
].
According to Idowu et al. [
57
], a study on landfill classification in sub-Saharan African
nations showed that most landfills in Nigeria are not standard, making it impossible for
them to provide social, economic, or environmental advantages.
Other novel methods of waste treatment that involve energy and material recovery
such as incineration, anaerobic digestion, and thermal and chemical treatment methods
have not yet been developed or adopted in Nigeria [22].
3.2. Circular Economy as a Solution to the Waste Management Crisis in Nigeria
The circular economy has been regarded as a veritable means of tackling waste man-
agement even in developing countries [
15
]. It proffers solutions by considering the entire
waste management value chain which includes generation, segregation, collection, trans-
portation, disposal, recycling, resource recovery, and treatment. It also considers the entire
product lifecycle beginning from virgin resource extraction to end-of-life product man-
agement. With a focus on waste management, the circular economy mainly emphasizes
high waste recycling rates, the minimization of waste generation, the redesign of products,
product reuse, and sustainable waste treatment methods [
58
]. It articulates the understand-
ing that effective waste management should foster economic prosperity, environmental
sustainability, social inclusiveness, and business opportunities. Waste management that
is anchored on a circular economy would therefore provide benefits such as increased
economic savings achieved through resource minimization, good environmental quality
achieved through a reduction in waste, energy, and emissions, and job creation by an
increase in the number of stakeholders and value chain actors that could participate in the
reverse logistics in the supply chain [16].
In Nigeria’s context, studies have explored and documented several conditionalities
that can either serve as enablers or barriers to circular economy implementation in solid
waste valorization. Some of the enablers include (i) streams of solid waste generated
in Nigeria that have proven reusable and marketability value, (ii) the availability of a
well-organized value chain of the informal waste sector, (iii) the existence of regulatory
institutions through which circular economy programs can be introduced, monitored,
and regulated at the macro level [
56
], and (iv) certain types of business models already
operational in Nigeria that can facilitate the introduction of a circular economy at the
micro level [
59
]. The absence of state-of-the-art waste disposal/treatment infrastructure,
non-standardized policies, and poor and inefficient waste collection methods are some
of the factors identified as barriers to effective circular economy implementation in solid
waste management in Nigeria [
60
]. The current work supplements the available literature,
as it studies and provides more specific information on the challenges and opportunities of
achieving a circular plastics economy in Nigeria.
4. Materials and Method
We searched different databases (Scopus, Google Scholar, Science Direct, and Web of
Science) for relevant articles on the consumption, production, and end-of-life management
of plastic and plastic products in Nigeria. We also search for the grey literature such as
national and local government publications, publications of international bodies such
as the World Bank, International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) and United Nations
agencies (e.g., UN-Habitat, and UNEP) policy briefs, project documents of international aid
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 6 of 25
agencies, and websites of non-governmental bodies and practitioners (e.g., Ellen MacArthur
Foundation). Further materials were retrieved from the reference lists of the selected
documents. The keywords for the search included but were not limited to “plastic waste
management”, “plastic production”, “plastic consumption”, “plastic waste pollution”,
“plastic waste recycling”, plastic waste minimization”, “plastic waste policy”, and “circular
economy”. All search terms included the phrase “in Nigeria”.
Records retrieved from the search were exported to Microsoft Excel (Version 16.0) for
further analysis. One of the authors participated in the screening/selection of material,
while another author independently examined the screening process to resolve disagree-
ments and ensure consistency. We first removed irrelevant materials and duplicate records.
At the second stage of the record screening, materials were removed based on the following
criteria: (i) materials that do not report an outcome of interest as concerns plastic waste
management elements in Nigeria such as recycling, resource recovery, waste treatment, col-
lection, policy framework, and segregation/sorting; (ii) only articles published in English
were considered; and (iii) articles from journals not indexed in a credible database such
as Web of Science, PubMed, and SCOPUS were expunged to avoid including predatory
materials. The collated materials were reviewed, analyzed, and categorized to answer the
following questions:
1. What is the status of the production of plastic and plastic products in Nigeria?
2. What is the status of the consumption of plastic and plastic products in Nigeria?
3. What is the status of the management of plastic waste in Nigeria?
4.
What are the prospects and opportunities for achieving a circular plastics economy
in Nigeria?
5. The Status of Plastic Production and Consumption in Nigeria
5.1. Plastic Production in Nigeria
Plastics are made of polymers or long chains of repeating molecules [
61
]. They
come from non-renewable resources like natural gas and mineral oil, as well as, more
recently, plant-based and renewable resources like polylactic acid. According to Kosior
and Mitchell [
62
], virgin fossil fuel is the source of over 90% of plastics manufactured. In
order to give the polymers particular desired features, such as a greater efficiency, cost
reduction, and the desired color, they are frequently processed including other materials,
such as additives [43].
Nigeria is the only country in West Africa that produces plastic resin in addition to
being the continent’s largest producer of crude oil. The country is said to have produced
486 kt of resin in 2018 and 498 kt in 2019 [
63
]. Nigeria’s plastic industry processed about
1094 kt of resin in 2018 and 978 kt in 2019. According to market reports, plastic production
in Nigeria has grown rapidly at a rate of 13.9% annually, from 411 kt in 2015 to a projected
513 kt in 2020 [
64
]. Because Nigeria is also the highest importer of resin in West Africa,
it is equally the largest producer of olefins and polyolefin plastics in the region with
Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals Limited being the lead company [
65
]. The nation’s plastic
sector began with 50 registered businesses in the 1960s and is currently home to over
3000 enterprises that produce a wide range of goods, including shopping bags, tables,
jerry cans, mats, etc. [
63
,
66
]. However, there are thousands of undocumented small-scale
businesses producing plastic packaging materials (popularly known as nylon) across the
country. These small-scale plastic businesses are easy to establish and have also created
thousands of job opportunities, especially in the informal sector. The local plastic business
is also said to be lucrative with minimal risk [67].
Nigeria does not have the indigenous resins required to produce PET plastic variants;
hence, the local manufacturing sector is completely dependent on imports. Amorphous PET
resin is imported from different parts of Asia such as China. Through the scientific method
of Solid-State Polycondensation (SSP), the imported resin is reprocessed to be suitable
for food-grade applications. The limited availability of other essential resources such as
advanced technology/machinery, poor finances that could hinder large-scale production,
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 7 of 25
and an irregular power supply limit the Nigerian plastic industry to the production of
mainly packaging and household items [
68
]. The other advanced forms of plastic and plastic
products such as toys, automobile parts, construction materials, and other sophisticated
applications are mostly imported [9].
Figure 1shows the quantity of plastic produced in Nigeria between 2007 and 2020.
Sustainability 2024, 16, x FOR PEER REVIEW 7 of 26
thousands of job opportunities, especially in the informal sector. The local plastic business
is also said to be lucrative with minimal risk [67].
Nigeria does not have the indigenous resins required to produce PET plastic variants;
hence, the local manufacturing sector is completely dependent on imports. Amorphous
PET resin is imported from different parts of Asia such as China. Through the scientific
method of Solid-State Polycondensation (SSP), the imported resin is reprocessed to be
suitable for food-grade applications. The limited availability of other essential resources
such as advanced technology/machinery, poor finances that could hinder large-scale pro-
duction, and an irregular power supply limit the Nigerian plastic industry to the produc-
tion of mainly packaging and household items [68]. The other advanced forms of plastic
and plastic products such as toys, automobile parts, construction materials, and other so-
phisticated applications are mostly imported [9].
Figure 1 shows the quantity of plastic produced in Nigeria between 2007 and 2020.
Figure 1. Plastic production in Nigeria from 2007 to 2020 (source: [64]).
5.2. Importation of Plastic and Plastic Products in Nigeria
Despite the huge availability of petroleum resources and large quantities of plastic
and plastic products produced locally, Nigeria still depends on importation to meet its net
plastic demand [68]. The import constitutes about 63% of the resins used in plastic pro-
duction. There are no harmonized data on the importation of plastic and plastic products
in Nigeria. A study conducted for the period 1996–2014 pointed out that approximately
14,200,000 tons of plastics in primary form was imported into Nigeria within this time.
Approximately 3,420,000 tons of the total plastics was imported in the form of products,
while approximately 5,545,700 tons was imported as product components. Another
194,000 tons of plastic toys was imported over six years [9].
Nevertheless, a different source stated that Nigeria imported 247,000 tons of plastic
film in 2017 alone. With 137,000 tons imported, polyethylene (PE) was the most frequent
120
205 213
260
303
335
390 396 411 428 442
462
495 513
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Plastic Production (thousand tons)
Year
Figure 1. Plastic production in Nigeria from 2007 to 2020 (source: [64]).
5.2. Importation of Plastic and Plastic Products in Nigeria
Despite the huge availability of petroleum resources and large quantities of plastic
and plastic products produced locally, Nigeria still depends on importation to meet its net
plastic demand [
68
]. The import constitutes about 63% of the resins used in plastic pro-
duction. There are no harmonized data on the importation of plastic and plastic products
in Nigeria. A study conducted for the period 1996–2014 pointed out that approximately
14,200,000 tons of plastics in primary form was imported into Nigeria within this time. Ap-
proximately 3,420,000 tons of the total plastics was imported in the form of products, while
approximately 5,545,700 tons was imported as product components. Another 194,000 tons
of plastic toys was imported over six years [9].
Nevertheless, a different source stated that Nigeria imported 247,000 tons of plastic
film in 2017 alone. With 137,000 tons imported, polyethylene (PE) was the most frequent
type of plastic. As seen in Figure 2, the total import volume of polypropylene (PP) came to
about 65,000 tons, placing it second in terms of quantity [69].
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 8 of 25
Sustainability 2024, 16, x FOR PEER REVIEW 8 of 26
type of plastic. As seen in Figure 2, the total import volume of polypropylene (PP) came
to about 65,000 tons, placing it second in terms of quantity [69].
Figure 2. Plastic film imports in Nigeria in 2017, by type (source: [69]).
Nigeria imported USD 1.7 billion worth of plastic in total in 2019 [70]. This included
net imports of all plastic resin. Nigeria is currently the top resin importer on the continent
because imports account for around two-thirds of the country’s virgin resin demand [63].
However, according to the Nigeria government’s policy document titled “National Strat-
egy for Competitiveness in Raw Materials and Products Development in Nigeria” pub-
lished in 2017 by the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), the
government has set import reduction targets for items including plastics and articles
thereof for periods with 5-, 10-, and 15-year intervals, with the hope of achieving improve-
ments in the availability of these materials locally [71] (see Table 1).
Table 1. Potential for percentage import reduction in plastic raw materials and products in the short,
medium, and long term (source: [71]).
HS CODE
Broad Category of
Raw Materials
and Products
% Reduction in Imports
Short
Term (0 < 5
Years)
Avg Medium Term
(5 < 10 Years) Avg
Long Term
and over
10 Years
Avg
39 Plastics and arti-
cles thereof 10 30 50
40 Rubber and arti-
cles thereof 5 35 60
(39–40) Plastics and arti-
cles thereof 15 7.5 65 32.5 110 55
5.3. Plastic Consumption in Nigeria
The demand for plastic consumables in Nigeria, such as gift items, plastic cups, toys,
furniture, etc., is so high that the local manufacturers in the country cannot satisfy the
market demand. Apart from local buyers, entire Economic Community of West African
State (ECOWAS) subregions rely wholly on Nigeria for their plastic products [72]. Nigeria
137.2
64.7
27.1
16.8
1.5
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
PE PP PET PVC PA
Import volume in thousand tons
Polymer types
Figure 2. Plastic film imports in Nigeria in 2017, by type (source: [69]).
Nigeria imported USD 1.7 billion worth of plastic in total in 2019 [
70
]. This included
net imports of all plastic resin. Nigeria is currently the top resin importer on the continent
because imports account for around two-thirds of the country’s virgin resin demand [
63
].
However, according to the Nigeria government’s policy document titled “National Strategy
for Competitiveness in Raw Materials and Products Development in Nigeria” published
in 2017 by the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), the govern-
ment has set import reduction targets for items including plastics and articles thereof for
periods with 5-, 10-, and 15-year intervals, with the hope of achieving improvements in the
availability of these materials locally [71] (see Table 1).
Table 1. Potential for percentage import reduction in plastic raw materials and products in the short,
medium, and long term (source: [71]).
HS CODE Broad Category of Raw
Materials and Products
% Reduction in Imports
Short Term
(0 < 5 Years) Avg Medium Term
(5 < 10 Years) Avg Long Term and
over 10 Years Avg
39 Plastics and articles thereof 10 30 50
40 Rubber and articles thereof 5 35 60
(39–40) Plastics and articles thereof 15 7.5 65 32.5 110 55
5.3. Plastic Consumption in Nigeria
The demand for plastic consumables in Nigeria, such as gift items, plastic cups, toys,
furniture, etc., is so high that the local manufacturers in the country cannot satisfy the
market demand. Apart from local buyers, entire Economic Community of West African
State (ECOWAS) subregions rely wholly on Nigeria for their plastic products [
72
]. Nigeria
consumes the most plastic in plastic packaging. According to data published in 2020,
54% of plastic in Nigeria was used as packaging material, and 16% was used by the
construction industry, which is the second largest sector consuming plastic in Nigeria [
73
]
(see Figure 3). Nigeria is said to have an annual growth rate of roughly 3.6% in its per
capita plastic consumption.
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 9 of 25
Sustainability 2024, 16, x FOR PEER REVIEW 9 of 26
consumes the most plastic in plastic packaging. According to data published in 2020, 54%
of plastic in Nigeria was used as packaging material, and 16% was used by the construc-
tion industry, which is the second largest sector consuming plastic in Nigeria [73] (see
Figure 3). Nigeria is said to have an annual growth rate of roughly 3.6% in its per capita
plastic consumption.
For example, it increased from 4 kg in 2007 to 5.9 kg in 2018, with a projection of
reaching 6.8 kg in 2022 [68]. In Nigeria, short-lived products account for a disproportion-
ate amount of plastic consumption [26]. If this trend is further examined, it is likely to
result in a low average service life for all plastic products and, as a result, a high propor-
tion and generation rate of plastic waste in municipal solid waste.
Figure 3. Distribution of plastic consumption in Nigeria in 2017 (source: [73]).
Most of the plastic consumed in Nigeria can be classified into the five major polymer
types which include polyethylene terephthalate (PET), high-density polyethene (HDPE),
polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), and polyvinylchloride (PVC) (see Table 2). There is
a high demand for PET bottles in Nigeria, and this demand comes from several multina-
tionals and small- and medium-scale enterprises that are involved in the production of
fast-moving consumer products including bottle-packaged water. The plastic-producing
companies usually process the PET resin into preforms which are supplied to the consum-
ing companies that subsequently use them to manufacture PET bottles. It is predicted that
225,000 tons of PET is consumed per year in Nigeria [68].
Table 2. The key plastic polymer components available in Nigeria and their major industrial appli-
cations (source: [26,68]).
54%
16%
21%
6% 3%
Distribution of plastic consumption in Nigeria
Packaging materials
Construction industry
Others
Automotive industry
Electrical, electronics, and telecoms
Figure 3. Distribution of plastic consumption in Nigeria in 2017 (source: [73]).
For example, it increased from 4 kg in 2007 to 5.9 kg in 2018, with a projection of
reaching 6.8 kg in 2022 [
68
]. In Nigeria, short-lived products account for a disproportionate
amount of plastic consumption [
26
]. If this trend is further examined, it is likely to result in
a low average service life for all plastic products and, as a result, a high proportion and
generation rate of plastic waste in municipal solid waste.
Most of the plastic consumed in Nigeria can be classified into the five major polymer
types which include polyethylene terephthalate (PET), high-density polyethene (HDPE),
polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), and polyvinylchloride (PVC) (see Table 2). There is a
high demand for PET bottles in Nigeria, and this demand comes from several multinationals
and small- and medium-scale enterprises that are involved in the production of fast-moving
consumer products including bottle-packaged water. The plastic-producing companies
usually process the PET resin into preforms which are supplied to the consuming companies
that subsequently use them to manufacture PET bottles. It is predicted that 225,000 tons of
PET is consumed per year in Nigeria [68].
Table 2. The key plastic polymer components available in Nigeria and their major industrial applica-
tions (source: [26,68]).
Name of Polymer Industry Product
Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) Food and beverages and textiles
PET preforms, packaging containers, and PSF
High-density polyethene (HDPE) FMCG FMCG product packaging such as
shampoo bottles
Polypropylene (PP) Food and beverages, household goods,
and construction
Household items, cement bags, packaging
containers, and films
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 10 of 25
Table 2. Cont.
Name of Polymer Industry Product
Polystyrene (PS) Automobile and electronics
Knobs, instrument panels, trim, energy
absorbing door panels, and sound
dampening foams
Polyvinylchloride (PVC) Construction and footwear PVC pipes, PVC doors, and window frames
6. The Status of Plastic Waste Management in Nigeria
6.1. Sources of Plastic Waste
(i)
Household solid waste (HSW)
Households are the major sources of municipal solid waste in Nigeria, and the pattern
of waste generated from households could change according to consumption patterns [
74
].
Consumption patterns, however, are affected by socioeconomic, environmental, and demo-
graphic factors linked to the households (e.g., income, culture, family size, etc.). There are
no formally documented data on the quantity of plastic waste constituents present in the
typical HSW in Nigeria. Waste composition analysis of HSW conducted in Abuja, Nigeria’s
capital city, shows that the quantity of plastic waste generated is 7.3%, 9.2%, and 10.1% for
low-, medium-, and high-income households, respectively [
52
]. Plastic is the third largest
component after organic and paper.
(ii)
Packaging industry
The vast majority of plastic waste constituents present in typical municipal solid
waste samples in Nigeria are packaging materials [
26
,
27
]. The most prominent plastic
polymer types generated as packaging waste are polyethylene (PE) and PET. They are
commonly used in the packaging of fast-moving consumer products (e.g., sachets and
bottled water) and also as single-use shopping bags [
27
]. During a normal dry season,
around 70% of Nigerians are reported to drink at least one bag of sachet water per day [
75
].
This corresponds to about 50–60 million nylon sachet plastics that are used and discarded
every day [
56
]. Disposable plates, mugs, cutlery, and other consumer goods are packaged
in single-use plastic bags.
(iii)
Agricultural industry waste
In the agricultural sector, a number of plastic polymer types are utilized, including
HDPE, PVC, PE, and PP [
18
]. Plastic materials have found applications in the agricultural
sector in Nigeria. For instance, they serve as packaging for manure and other organic
materials used in agriculture, cover for mulching, irrigation pipes, agricultural films, and
storage material for agricultural chemicals such as pesticides [
76
]. The end-of-life products
are generated as plastic waste in cities and rural areas across Nigeria.
(iv)
Commercial sources/public establishments
Several categories of plastic waste are generated from daily activities that take place in
commercial centers and public establishments across the country. This plastic waste is used
in packaging, especially single-use disposable variants, at various commercial centers. The
commercial centers/public institutions include offices, shopping malls, community centers,
urban markets, schools, establishments, etc. For instance, a solid waste quantification
analysis conducted at the University of Nigeria showed that about 8.53% of the total waste
stream generated is plastic [
77
]. Similar waste characterization conducted at the University
of Lagos showed that polyethylene bags are the largest constituent at 24% [78].
(v)
Construction industry
Because of the wider application of plastic materials in the construction industry in
Nigeria, construction waste is made up of plastic components. Aside from packaging
materials, the construction industry is the second largest consumer of plastic in Nigeria [
68
].
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 11 of 25
PVC and PP polymer types, for instance, are used in plumbing materials, electrical wiring
and fittings, pipes, ceilings, roofs, window frames, door frames, tanks, fittings, etc. The
majority of these items come into the country through importation [
9
]. This results in a
large volume of plastic waste arising from the usage of the imported finished consumer
products.
(vi)
Medical/biomedical sources
Nigeria has diverse medical facilities that generate enormous amounts of waste, with
high quantities of plastic constituents. These medical facilities include clinics, laboratories,
research centers, etc. The types of plastic waste generated include hand gloves, syringes,
catheters, medicine containers, IV tubes, etc. [
79
]. Waste characterization conducted in
select hospitals in Umuahia, a location in southeast Nigeria, indicated a high quantity of
plastics [80].
(vii)
Other industrial sectors
Plastic and plastic materials have found wide applications in other industrial sectors in
Nigeria yielding high volumes of plastic waste [
9
]. For instance, the electrical and electronic
industries (e.g., waste of electronic and electrical equipment, solar PVC panels, Christmas
lights, etc.), the transport industry (e.g., automobile parts), and the tourism industry (e.g.,
hotels, beaches, etc.).
6.2. Characterization, Composition, and Generation Rate
There are no comprehensively documented data on waste characterization in Nigeria.
However, there are some available studies that were conducted in locations across the
country [
22
]. None of the studies on solid waste characterization in the Nigerian locations
have failed to highlight significant plastic components (see Figure 4).
Sustainability 2024, 16, x FOR PEER REVIEW 11 of 26
Because of the wider application of plastic materials in the construction industry in
Nigeria, construction waste is made up of plastic components. Aside from packaging ma-
terials, the construction industry is the second largest consumer of plastic in Nigeria [68].
PVC and PP polymer types, for instance, are used in plumbing materials, electrical wiring
and fittings, pipes, ceilings, roofs, window frames, door frames, tanks, fittings, etc. The
majority of these items come into the country through importation [9]. This results in a
large volume of plastic waste arising from the usage of the imported finished consumer
products.
(vi) Medical/biomedical sources
Nigeria has diverse medical facilities that generate enormous amounts of waste, with
high quantities of plastic constituents. These medical facilities include clinics, laboratories,
research centers, etc. The types of plastic waste generated include hand gloves, syringes,
catheters, medicine containers, IV tubes, etc. [79]. Waste characterization conducted in se-
lect hospitals in Umuahia, a location in southeast Nigeria, indicated a high quantity of
plastics [80].
(vii) Other industrial sectors
Plastic and plastic materials have found wide applications in other industrial sectors
in Nigeria yielding high volumes of plastic waste [9]. For instance, the electrical and elec-
tronic industries (e.g., waste of electronic and electrical equipment, solar PVC panels,
Christmas lights, etc.), the transport industry (e.g., automobile parts), and the tourism in-
dustry (e.g., hotels, beaches, etc.).
6.2. Characterization, Composition, and Generation Rate
There are no comprehensively documented data on waste characterization in Nige-
ria. However, there are some available studies that were conducted in locations across the
country [22]. None of the studies on solid waste characterization in the Nigerian locations
have failed to highlight significant plastic components (see Figure 4).
Figure 4. Waste characterization conducted in locations in Nigeria highlighting plastic components
(source: [22]).
There is no law on solid waste segregation/separation in Nigeria, and there are no
specific detailed documented data on the characterization of plastic waste constituents
[22]. However, there are also a few studies on specific plastic waste composition analysis.
8.7 7.98 8.05
10.4
3.64 4
17.55 18.1
12.9
1.6
9
0.44
898.53
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
QUANTITY OF PLASTICS GENERATED (%)
CITIES
Figure 4. Waste characterization conducted in locations in Nigeria highlighting plastic components
(source: [22]).
There is no law on solid waste segregation/separation in Nigeria, and there are no
specific detailed documented data on the characterization of plastic waste constituents [
22
].
However, there are also a few studies on specific plastic waste composition analysis. For
instance, the characterization of plastic waste was conducted in a dumpsite in Calabar,
Nigeria, on 21 plastic samples which were categorized into representative plastics. The
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 12 of 25
plastic categories were PET bottles, LDPE, PP, HDPE, PS trays, PVC fibers, and PVC others.
PET bottles were the highest component at 28.5%, followed by PP, LDPE, and HDPE. PS
trays, PVC fibers, and PVC others were the least prevalent plastics at the dump site [
81
].
In a plastic waste characterization analysis conducted in Ilorin, Nigeria, it was reported
that the dominant plastic waste stream was polyethylene at 57.07% followed by PET at
12.83%. Polystyrene, polypropylene, and others were produced at 12.12%, 11.08%, and
6.76%, respectively. PET and polyethylene are highly prevalent in the plastic waste stream
in Nigeria, indicating how widely used and consumed they are in a variety of consumer
and commercial goods [
82
]. Plastic makes up the largest amount of microdebris found
in a Nigerian river, accounting for 59% of the total. Other waste components found in
the sampled river included metal, cloth, paper/cardboard, rubber, ceramics/glass, wood,
medical, and agro-based waste.
Among the plastics, PET made up the largest percentage (29%), followed by PE (22%),
PVC (16%), PP (14%), and miscellaneous plastics (6%) [
34
]. It is estimated that Nigerian
households and businesses produce about 230,000 tons of end-of-life PET waste annually.
PET bottles, films, and containers are the main PET waste products generated. About
260,000 tons and 430,000 tons of end-of-life waste of PP and PE, respectively, are estimated
to be generated in Nigeria annually [68].
6.3. Collection and Transfer
There are two main ways to collect plastic waste: curbside collection or “bring-scheme”
collection. In the absence of either highly committed public behavior or deposit refund
schemes that create a direct economic incentive to participate, “bring-scheme” collection
typically produces low collection rates [
4
]. In suburbs where population density is high
enough to realize economies of scale, the house-to-house collection of end-of-life plastics
is more cost-effective. However, the best collecting plan may differ depending on the
area, the kind of housing, and the available sorting facilities. The use of transfer stations
in solid waste management planning and execution in Nigeria is not reported in the
literature [
20
,
21
]. In general, there is a poor collection rate for solid waste (including
plastics) in cities across Nigeria, to the extent that uncollected plastic waste is reported to
cause the blockage of water channels, resulting in flooding [23,26].
6.4. Sorting/Segregation
Co-mingled solid recyclables are sorted using both human and machine techniques.
Sorted waste plastic is usually cleaned to get rid of adhesives, pulp fibers, and food
residues before being broken into flakes for efficient recycling. In Nigeria, plastic waste
is not segregated or sorted at the point of generation such as households, offices, and
establishments. However, because of their reusability and marketability within the local
markets, plastic waste variants especially PET bottles are manually sorted and collected at
waste bins, dumpsites, and landfills by informal waste recyclers [
53
]. The informal waste
management activities are mainly motivated by economic hardship. The use of machines
in waste sorting has reportedly not been used in waste management in Nigeria.
6.5. Disposal
The indiscriminate disposal of plastic waste has been reported in places across Nige-
ria [
27
,
83
]. A large amount of plastic generated in Nigeria ends up in landfills and/or open
dumpsites located across the country [
26
]. Landfilling is a recognized method of solid
waste disposal. Even though it is not ranked as high as recycling, resource recovery, and
reuse, it is still regarded as a crucial technique for disposing of waste because other waste
treatment methods, such as incineration, still leave residue that must be disposed of in
landfills [
57
]. From a sustainability perspective, the main disadvantage of disposing of
plastic waste in landfills is that no material resources utilized in its creation are retrieved.
The material flow is linear instead of cyclic. The outright burning of solid waste is still
common in many developing countries including Nigeria [38]. A large quantity of plastic
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 13 of 25
waste generated in Nigeria is still disposed of by outright burning [
26
,
82
]. It is also reported
that the indiscriminate dumping of municipal solid waste in drainage channels, at railway
tracks, in bushes, and in water bodies is still common in Nigeria [23].
6.6. Reuse and Recycling
Reuse in the context of waste management involves the use of end-of-life products
repeatedly in a product cycle before they finally enter the waste stream. This practice is
rampant in Nigeria, facilitated by the informal waste sector. Several end-of-life plastic
products are collected from waste bins, dumpsites, and landfills by waste pickers. They
sort and sell these products to the cottage industry which reuses them in the secondary
packaging of several consumer products [
56
]. For example, in informal markets, PET bottles
are reused in the secondary packaging of products such as palm oil, groundnuts, cashew
nuts, etc.; end-of-life paint containers are reused as buckets in households.
Once a solid recyclable material finally enters the waste stream after the reuse stage, it
can either be retrieved through recycling or resource recovery processes. When it comes to
plastic and plastic products, recycling is the process of reprocessing recovered plastic to
make a new product, but resource recovery also includes energy recovery, which involves
using the plastic’s calorific value as fuel, gas, or energy through controlled heating [
4
]. Both
procedures, however, do not lessen the need for virgin materials, which lowers the overall
effectiveness of the circular economy [
58
]. Plastic recycling can be conducted in three main
ways: (i) primary recycling, which involves mechanically reprocessing plastic waste into
products with similar characteristics; (ii) secondary recycling, which involves processing
plastic waste into products with different characteristics; and (iii) tertiary recycling, which
involves recovering chemical constituents and producing basic chemicals and fuel from
segregated municipal solid waste [
4
,
26
]. Composting biodegradable plastics is an additional
example of tertiary recycling [
84
]. Another name for it is biological or organic recycling.
Although the chemical technology for recycling plastic has been created, the high costs of
plants and processes in comparison to inexpensive petrochemical feedstocks have limited
the applicability of this technology [4,85].
The mechanical recycling (primary and secondary types) of plastic is common in
Nigeria, while chemical recycling (tertiary) is not commonly practiced [
68
]. Annually,
about 10,000 tons of PE and PP plastic waste is recycled mechanically in Nigeria. The low
recycling rate for PP and PE can be attributed to several factors which include the difficulty
in recycling and challenges in distinguishing between PE and PP polymers from other
types of plastic [68].
6.7. Energy Recovery
Incineration
While incinerating plastic waste eliminates the need for landfills, there are worries that
hazardous substances could be discharged into the atmosphere in the process [
86
]. This is
because additives consisting of some potentially harmful compounds are frequently found
in plastics. In mixed plastic debris, for example, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and halogenated
additives are frequently included. These materials are not fit for incineration because
doing so could release halogenated contaminants into the atmosphere. For this reason,
as a waste management method, the incineration of plastic waste is less recommended
than landfill and mechanical recycling. The fact that incineration is especially vulnerable to
waste stream contamination is another drawback [
84
]. This is true, especially in Nigeria,
where solid waste is collected as co-mingled waste streams. Notwithstanding, incineration
could reduce the need for landfills, as it significantly reduces the volume of waste that
would have gone to the landfill and provides a chance for energy recovery. The incineration
slag can be further processed and recycled as a construction material.
Further, the pollution aspect of incineration can be fixed at more cost by employing
advanced filters. Incineration is, therefore, a more likely option for reducing emissions than
landfills, but the technique is still not cheap due to associated high capital and maintenance
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 14 of 25
costs. For these reasons, except for a few isolated cases in which it is applied to the treatment
of medical waste, incineration has not been widely embraced as a solid waste management
technology in Nigeria [22].
Other waste-to-energy treatment methods
Among the components of typical municipal solid waste, plastic has the highest con-
tent of low heating value (LHV) [
87
]. The conversion of solid plastic waste to energy
through waste-to-energy (WTE) technologies/processes (pyrolysis, thermo-chemical pro-
cesses, etc.) has been suggested as one veritable method of plastic waste treatment in
Nigeria [
25
]. However, waste-to-energy conversion technologies have not been extensively
adopted as waste treatment methods in Nigeria and other African countries due to the
associated high capital and maintenance costs [50].
7. Appraisal of Plastic Waste Policy Landscape and Institutional Framework in Nigeria
Nigeria is a signatory to the Stockholm and Basel conventions, as well as the United
Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The country has voiced concerns about
the effects of microplastics, plastic waste, and marine litter and has emphasized the need
to reduce consumption and ensure environmentally sound management practices [
88
].
Nigeria drafted the first national policy on the environment in 1991 which has been re-
peatedly revised to date. There are also national policies on solid waste management that
provide guidelines on how solid waste should be managed in the country. Following the
increased danger posed by plastic waste in the environment, a special guideline on plastic
waste management was issued by the Federal Ministry of Environment in 2020. The policy
was drafted with the input of several stakeholders such as producers, state government
representatives, the organized private sectors, civil society organizations, academicians,
waste management practitioners, and international organizations. The policy instrument
elaborated on pertinent issues concerning plastic waste management in Nigeria such as
an institutional framework, stakeholders’ roles and responsibilities, funding and resource
mobilization, a legislative framework, guiding principles, and strategies for policy imple-
mentation. Although the circular economy was mentioned in the policy document as one
of the guiding principles, it did not informatively highlight the modalities and feasible
roadmap to achieving the circular plastics economy at three levels, which include the
micro-, meso-, and macro levels. The specific Nigerian context under which this circular
economy could be implemented was not discussed. For instance, several strategies to
achieve effective plastic waste management such as a ban on certain categories of plastic
and the implementation of extended producer responsibilities were itemized, but details
on how these instruments should be adopted and implemented were not documented in
the policy paper. Also, the policy guideline mentioned the importance of informal waste
recycling to plastic waste management, but there were no reliable details on how they can
be either integrated into the formal system or given a platform to operate. Other critical
factors that could hinder the implementation of a circular economy (e.g., citizen engage-
ment, social inclusion, financial sustainability, knowledge creation, etc.) were mentioned
without clear information on how they can be tackled. It is also observed that the policy
may not have been drafted following a scientific baseline study that could have provided
reliable data and information on waste management for credible policy engagement.
Also, highlighting inconsistencies, the legislative foundations for solid waste manage-
ment in Nigeria are equally weak [
22
]. For example, a landmark bill intended to outlaw
plastic bags in Nigeria has drawn criticism for being inadequate since it is not appropriately
drafted to produce the desired outcomes [
32
]. It suggests complete prohibitions and harsh
penalties for the manufacture, distribution, and use of plastic bags for residential and com-
mercial packaging, much like a number of other plastic regulations that have been put into
place throughout Africa. However, the bill lacks alternatives and market-based instruments
that could influence consumer behavior, such as tradable permit schemes, subsidies, and
incentives, liability and compensation schemes, taxes, charges, fees, fines, penalties, and
schemes for plastic bag usage [
89
]. This is because imposing a levy on specific types of
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 15 of 25
plastic may yield revenue for government-funded environmental initiatives [
90
]. Addi-
tional flaws in the proposed legislation include limited public consultations, jurisprudence,
practicability, and inadequate notice to the public [32].
As of 2021, which was two years after the passage of the bill in Nigeria’s House of
Representatives (lower house), it is yet to be either ratified by the Senate (Upper House)
or assented to by the executive [
91
]. This points to the government’s low commitment
to environmental policy implementation. However, the Lagos state government in 2024
became the first state in Nigeria to ban Styrofoam, a plastic polymer variant used for food
packaging [92].
8. Future Projections of Plastic Waste Generation and Collection Rates in Nigeria
The current quantities of plastic waste generated and collected as a component of
municipal solid waste in Nigeria will be calculated for 2024 and projected further into
2040. Although numerous elements affect how much solid waste is generated in cities, the
population of the city, the population growth index, and the amount of waste generated
per capita are the generally acknowledged factors that are sensitive to projections [
93
].
Adopting the 2006 population census figure, P
2006
, of 140,431,790 and annual population
growth, rate r, of 2.5% [
94
], the projected total Nigerian population for the future year 20XY
is given by the following:
P20xy = P2006 (1 + r/100)20XY−2006 (1)
If we assume Nigeria’s current urban population of 54.28% for 2023 to remain con-
stant [95], the urban population for the future year will be
P20XY(URBAN) = 0.5428 ×P20XY (2)
The growth in the total and urban population from 2024 to 2050 is shown in Figure 5.
Sustainability 2024, 16, x FOR PEER REVIEW 16 of 26
Figure 5. The current and projected urban population vs. total population.
Assuming Q
Capita20XY
= per capita waste generation of 0.63 kg/capita/day [52], the total
quantity of urban waste generated in Nigeria’s urban areas for future years will be
Q
20XY
= 0.63 × P
20XY
(urban) (3)
Assuming a waste collection rate of 41%, which is an average value for low-income
countries [52], the total municipal solid waste collected for the current and future years is
calculated as
Q
20XY(Collected)
= 0.41 × Q
20XY
(4)
This equals 30,708.5 tonnes per day (TPD) for the current year 2024 and 45,587 TPD
for the year 2040. Since 10% of the collected waste is plastic [26], the total municipal solid
waste and plastic waste stream collected for 2024 to 2030 is shown in Figure 6.
0
50,000,000
100,000,000
150,000,000
200,000,000
250,000,000
300,000,000
350,000,000
400,000,000
2024 2026 2028 2030 2032 2034 2036 2038 2040
POPULATION
YEAR
Urban Population Total Population
Figure 5. The current and projected urban population vs. total population.
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 16 of 25
Assuming Q
Capita20XY
= per capita waste generation of 0.63 kg/capita/day [
52
], the
total quantity of urban waste generated in Nigeria’s urban areas for future years will be
Q20XY = 0.63 ×P20XY (urban) (3)
Assuming a waste collection rate of 41%, which is an average value for low-income
countries [
52
], the total municipal solid waste collected for the current and future years is
calculated as
Q20XY(Collected) = 0.41 ×Q20XY (4)
This equals 30,708.5 tonnes per day (TPD) for the current year 2024 and 45,587 TPD
for the year 2040. Since 10% of the collected waste is plastic [
26
], the total municipal solid
waste and plastic waste stream collected for 2024 to 2030 is shown in Figure 6.
Sustainability 2024, 16, x FOR PEER REVIEW 17 of 26
Figure 6. The quantities of MSW and plastic waste stream generated for the current and future
years.
Extending waste collection services to rural areas will increase the expected quanti-
ties of plastic waste to be collected for recycling, disposal, and/or resource recovery. An
increase in the population growth index and rapid urbanization resulting from the surge
in rural–urban migration and other socioeconomic derivatives such as the increase in fam-
ily income are factors that could affect the future quantities of plastic waste generated in
Nigerian cities. Improvements in the waste management policy implementation, the es-
tablishment of stronger institutions, the availability of economic resources, and the adop-
tion of modern technologies are factors that could influence the quantities of plastic waste
collected in the future.
9. Prospects for Achieving Circular Plastics Economy in Nigeria
About 95% of all plastic packaging material, which translates to USD 80 to 120 billion,
is lost yearly to the current linear plastic economy after a first short-use cycle. Existing
waste collection systems are currently unable to collect about 32% of all plastic packaging
waste, resulting in these wastes escaping to the natural environment, littering the oceans
and clogging the urban facilities [42]. Thus, it should come as no surprise that the linear
economy has played a major role in the global plastic waste crisis, both environmentally
and economically, with damage to marine ecosystems alone estimated to be worth USD
13 billion yearly [42,96]. It has been suggested that the plastic industry must change, mov-
ing its focus from single-use and disposable products to a model focused on recapturing
value and reducing waste, which is known as the circular economy, to mitigate growing
environmental concerns while simultaneously maintaining an increase in demand [18].
To effectively address all stages of the value chain and minimize the effects of the exten-
sive extraction of non-renewable resources, losses due to waste, and emissions that are
linked to plastics throughout their lifecycle, a circular economy framework for plastic
products must be designed [97]. The European Commission [35] proposed that seven
components are required to achieve a transformation into a circular economy which in-
clude skills and knowledge, organizational innovation, social innovation, technological
innovation, financial instruments, awareness/dissemination/internationalization, and
multistakeholder involvement. These components are not the same for all communities
0
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
2024 2026 2028 2030 2032 2034 2036 2038 2040
Qty of waste in TPD
Year
Qty of MSW Generated Qty of MSW Collected Qty Plastic waste stream collected
Figure 6. The quantities of MSW and plastic waste stream generated for the current and future years.
Extending waste collection services to rural areas will increase the expected quantities
of plastic waste to be collected for recycling, disposal, and/or resource recovery. An increase
in the population growth index and rapid urbanization resulting from the surge in rural–
urban migration and other socioeconomic derivatives such as the increase in family income
are factors that could affect the future quantities of plastic waste generated in Nigerian
cities. Improvements in the waste management policy implementation, the establishment
of stronger institutions, the availability of economic resources, and the adoption of modern
technologies are factors that could influence the quantities of plastic waste collected in
the future.
9. Prospects for Achieving Circular Plastics Economy in Nigeria
About 95% of all plastic packaging material, which translates to USD 80 to 120 billion,
is lost yearly to the current linear plastic economy after a first short-use cycle. Existing
waste collection systems are currently unable to collect about 32% of all plastic packaging
waste, resulting in these wastes escaping to the natural environment, littering the oceans
and clogging the urban facilities [
42
]. Thus, it should come as no surprise that the linear
economy has played a major role in the global plastic waste crisis, both environmentally
and economically, with damage to marine ecosystems alone estimated to be worth USD 13
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 17 of 25
billion yearly [
42
,
96
]. It has been suggested that the plastic industry must change, mov-
ing its focus from single-use and disposable products to a model focused on recapturing
value and reducing waste, which is known as the circular economy, to mitigate growing
environmental concerns while simultaneously maintaining an increase in demand [
18
]. To
effectively address all stages of the value chain and minimize the effects of the extensive
extraction of non-renewable resources, losses due to waste, and emissions that are linked
to plastics throughout their lifecycle, a circular economy framework for plastic products
must be designed [
97
]. The European Commission [
35
] proposed that seven components
are required to achieve a transformation into a circular economy which include skills and
knowledge, organizational innovation, social innovation, technological innovation, finan-
cial instruments, awareness/dissemination/internationalization, and multistakeholder
involvement. These components are not the same for all communities and societies, which
simply implies that a circular economy is applied according to context based on societal
peculiarities [16].
Aligning with the goals of sustainable development, the plastics industry is crucial
to the Nigerian economy, and enhancing its sustainability can open up new commercial
and economic prospects for innovation [
88
]. The general economic value of most Nigerian
industries including the plastic industry is always evaluated without considering the
additional value that could be derived from the recycling sub-sectors [
22
]. In a broad
sense, achieving a circular plastics economy will entail reducing plastic waste and pollution
through product design, retaining a product in the supply chain for longer, and regenerating
and preserving natural resources. How these can be achieved in Nigeria’s context is
discussed in what follows.
Alternative materials/biodegradable plastics: One acknowledged way to achieve a
circular plastics economy is to decouple plastics from fossil fuels in exchange for renewable
feedstock [
42
]. Since most oil-based polymers are not biodegradable, recycling them is
challenging. Variants of biodegradable plastic have the potential to address a number of
waste management problems, particularly with regard to disposable packaging that is
difficult to separate from organic waste in agricultural or culinary applications. In this case,
compostable and degradable materials should be properly labeled and handled in a way
that enhances waste management procedures rather than undermines them [84].
The use of alternative materials for achieving a plastic circular economy can be viewed
from three perspectives which include (i) adopting alternative input material for plastic
production, (ii) substituting plastic with other eco-friendly materials in certain applications,
and (iii) reducing the consumption of fossil-based plastics. Although using alternative
feedstock material for plastic production is already possible in developed countries [
34
],
the production logistics are still expensive when compared to fossil feedstock. According
to recent life cycle studies, biopolymers, particularly poly lactic acid (PLA), can reduce
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by up to 40% and the amount of non-renewable energy
used by 25% when compared to standard petrochemical-based plastics [85].
In Nigeria’s context, to achieve a circular economy in plastic waste management, the
only two viable options, therefore, include moving towards substituting plastic as much
as possible and reducing its use. First, natural leaf-type packaging which is still useful
in Nigeria’s countryside has been suggested as a good replacement for plastic packaging
especially in specialized food types in urban areas [
98
]. Natural leaf packaging can be made
abundant in the cities through sustainable urban tree planting and maintenance. It offers
better circular economy prospects than plastic packaging, as the end-of-life waste can easily
be converted to compost. However, natural leaf-type packaging being biodegradable would
require segregation and composting facilities across the country for appropriate disposal.
Second, the reduction in plastic consumption can be achieved by posing and enforcing
effective policies, implementing market-based instruments, and appropriate legislation.
The implementation of these instruments is discussed in what follows.
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR): The low cost and ease of production asso-
ciated with plastics and its allied products, especially packaging material, has triggered
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 18 of 25
an increase in their production and consumption and hence high waste generation. One
way to regulate indiscriminate production is through economic and market-based instru-
ments. Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) has been an effective circular economy
tool deployed across the globe for waste management regulations. It makes the producer
responsible for the management of their end-of-life products throughout the product lifecy-
cle [
99
]. It also incentivizes the producers to redesign their products to ease recyclability.
Because many consumer products (including plastics and packaging) available in Nigeria’s
market originate from small- and medium-scale enterprises that often lack the financial
capacity to implement EPR, Collective Producer Responsibility (CPR) has been suggested
as appropriate for Nigeria [
59
]. In CPR, producers pay eco-modulation fees according to
their capacity and the nature of the products they place in the market, whilst extra funds
can be mobilized from grants and other tax variants. The deposit refund system (DRS) is a
variant of EPR where fees are imposed on product consumption which would be refunded
to the consumers when the end-of-life products or packaging are returned for recycling or
effective disposal. The DRS has a huge potential to be an essential tool for promoting the
recycling of plastic waste in Nigeria. The implementation of a minimum monetary value
for all classes of plastic waste can stimulate informal recycling and waste segregation at the
source, create jobs in urban cities, and provide job security for waste pickers. More details
on the drivers and barriers to the implementation of Extended Producer Responsibility for
the circular economy in Nigeria can be found in [59].
Other policy and economic instruments: The feasibility of recycling thermoplastics
is influenced by two important economic factors. These include the costs of recycling
in comparison to other acceptable modes of disposal and the price of recycled polymers
compared to virgin polymers. This economic dynamic implies that, besides the outright
ban on certain categories of plastic [
32
], the policy framework in Nigeria needs to introduce
other market-based instruments to drive behavioral changes, incentivize recycling/reuse,
and subsidize the use of secondary material for plastic production in Nigeria. For instance,
considerable evidence has shown that a high rate of recycling is associated with an increase
in tipping fees [
100
]. Policies and laws must be placed inside a specific framework of
environmental plans with efficacy indicators in order for them to accomplish the goals for
which they are intended. This is especially true for economic instruments.
State-of-the-art waste treatment facilities: The absence of state-of-the-art waste treat-
ment facilities has hindered effective waste management in line with the circular economy
in places across Africa and in Nigeria [
22
,
50
]. It has been established that the key methods
of resource recovery from plastic waste are thermo-chemical processes (combustion, py-
rolysis, or gasification). These novel waste treatment facilities are expensive to build and
maintain, which has limited the technology’s potential for widespread use as an energy re-
covery option in developing countries, more particularly in Africa [
50
]. However, Ferronato
et al. [
15
] have proposed mechanical biological treatment (MBT) as a low-cost substitute
for conventional methods for treating waste and recovering energy from it in developing
nations. According to [
101
], MBT minimizes the volume and mass of solid waste that would
have been deposited in the landfill, deactivates the biological and chemical processes within
the waste to prevent the formation of contaminants, provides an opportunity for waste
segregation, and thereby improves the calorific value of the stabilized waste. The stabilized
high-calorific-value waste can be used for the production of refuse-derived fuel (RDF). RDF
could be a very important energy source for industrial processes (e.g., cement plants). With
good filters, RDF is a cleaner energy option than coal and preferable in industrial applica-
tions. MBT also promises other circular economy benefits, like less emissions from landfills
and minimizing leachate formation and unpleasant odors. Furthermore, the landfills will
have a longer lifespan. To promote employment creation, mechanical treatment might be
implemented for the sorting of recyclable materials, or it could be applied manually [
15
].
In the sorting section, coarse recycling fractions (e.g., plastics, bottles) can be separated.
Because emissions from landfills after the treatment of waste are reduced by about 90%,
MBT is, therefore, more appropriate for developing countries such as Nigeria where land-
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 19 of 25
fills are not standardized [
101
]. Also, as a measure against the high-cost waste-to-energy
technologies, frugal technology has been suggested as a method of producing low-cost
waste treatment facilities in developing countries [
102
]. The high cost of waste-to-energy
technologies is mainly because these technologies are often imported. With collaboration
among stakeholders such as research institutes, waste management authorities, and energy
commissions, cost-effective waste-to-energy (frugal) technologies using locally available
materials can be built in Nigeria for plastic waste management. In addition to these, the
construction of controlled landfills across the country is still recommended.
Informal waste recycling: The criticality of the informal waste sector to circular econ-
omy implementation in developing countries cannot be overemphasized. Its formalization
is an essential requirement often suggested for solid waste valorization [
15
,
22
]. In the
absence of formal recycling schemes in Nigeria, informal waste recycling schemes, through
their well-organized value chain, have facilitated the collection, segregation/sorting, reuse,
and recycling of recyclables including plastics. They operate at street bins, dumpsites, and
landfill locations, salvaging values from waste. They also move from house to house buying
clean recyclables from households. Economic hardship and the need for survival have been
the motivating factors. Plastic recyclables such as PET are among the most sought-after
recyclables collected by waste pickers. They work with rudimentary tools and often under
precarious conditions. Their safe inclusion in waste management in Nigeria is a factor that
would enhance the circular economy in solid waste management in Nigeria. To achieve
this safe inclusion, their working conditions, operational guidelines, occupational health,
safety, and retirement benefits need to be regulated.
Plastic waste upcycling: Upcycling may significantly reduce the environmental impact
of plastic production and consumption, and it is an effective technique to turn waste plastic
into high-value products [
103
]. When plastic waste can be upcycled, it means that it
can be used again without losing its value or functionality. Finding upcycling methods
for plastic waste will help cut down on the amount of waste dumped in landfills and
waterways. In addition to the other benefits of the circular economy, it minimizes the
reliance on non-renewable petroleum resources and lowers greenhouse gas emissions [
104
].
By using chemical, thermal, and biological processes, plastic waste can be upcycled into
carbon nanomaterials (CNMs) [
28
]. Because plastics have a high carbon content, there
are opportunities to use them as an inexpensive feedstock for upcycling to create value-
added goods like CNMs. Owing to their special qualities, CNMs are widely used in
the manufacturing of batteries, supercapacitors, paints, printer toners, and lubricants,
among other goods. In Nigeria, there is a high demand for each of these commercial and
industrial products. Plastic waste can also be upcycled into polymer composite materials
(PCMs). Since PCMs are specialized and of superior quality, their usage in the production
of common products is costly. This is because they were created for high-end applications.
These financial constraints offer chances to solve the social and environmental issues
that plastic waste is currently posing. Nonetheless, numerous streams of waste plastic
are inexpensive, adaptable, and readily available, making them ideal for upcycling into
composite materials made of plastic. It is pertinent to mention that the upcycling of plastic
waste into CNMs and PCMs in Nigeria’s context will largely depend on a cost–benefit
analysis of the associated technologies, scientific processes, and considerations for the safe
management of risks associated with nanoplastics.
Circular business model: The concept of circular economy foresees the introduction of
sustainable approaches into business, which can be achieved by the cyclic flow of material
that emphasizes the redesign of products, the elimination of waste, resource cycling, and the
increased longevity of products [
105
]. A notable business model known as the returnable
glass bottle process, used by breweries and beverage companies, has been identified as a
veritable means through which circular business models can be operationalized in Nigeria’s
context [
106
]. Though it is used in the management of end-of-life glass bottles, it can be
applied also to the management of end-of-life PET bottles, since most breweries/beverage
companies also produce products packaged with PET bottles. Adopting digital innovations
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 20 of 25
and circular business models has also been suggested as a measure to achieve a circular
plastics economy in Africa [107].
Industrial symbiosis: Industrial symbiosis is an industrial ecology concept where
companies, communities, and institutions exchange energies, waste products, and materials
in an interdependent manner [
108
]. It is analogous to biological symbiosis. A waste
product from a participating member of the industrial ecosystem could serve as feedstock
for another member. The plastic industry in Nigeria has demonstrated a certain level of
interdependency with other industrial sectors. For instance, the PET preforms and plastic
nylon used by the water packaging industry and most multinationals come from local
plastic firms. The generated plastic waste can be used to produce upcycled products such as
carbon nanomaterials which could be useful in other industrial sectors. This arrangement
has provided an opportunity to design industrial symbiosis through eco-industrial parks.
Data availability: The implementation of a circular economy is a process that would
require continuous appraisal and assessment based on the available data and information.
A lack of information/data has been hinted as one of the major challenges to circular
economy implementation in developing countries. Nigeria requires a national baseline
study for a start that would collate and document essential waste management indicators
for the country. Waste management data such as the waste collection rate, the waste
generation rate, and waste composition analysis need to be established for specific solid
waste streams such as organic, paper, plastics, etc. A demographic and health survey (DHS)
has been conducted in Nigeria since 1990 at intervals of five years. Through this survey,
basic socioeconomic and health data are collected by the government for optimal resource
allocation and national development planning. It is our opinion that waste management
data could be collected along with this survey in the future.
Improved collection through social initiatives: The rate of waste collection in the
current waste management system in Nigeria is poor and thereby not appropriately situated
to achieve the circular economy. The cities’ waste collection trucks are often not able to
access inner cities due to poor road networks which makes waste collection only limited
to the visible parts of the cities. The majority of waste generated in these inner cities is
often disposed of indiscriminately, especially into water bodies which are one of the main
sources of marine litter. In recent times, social initiatives such as Wecyclers have begun to
emerge, and they apply informal methods to collect recyclables including plastics from
unserved urban populations [
22
]. Through incentive policies that could support these social
initiatives, in the form of grants, training, and provisioning of modern waste collection
equipment, the government can support them to serve informal and underserved urban
areas in solid waste collection. In South Africa, for instance, a similar initiative called
‘Packa-ching” is currently operating a sustainable waste collection model for low-income
households. A typical Packa-ching business unit operates as a business model managed
by an entrepreneur. The business unit would receive initial support which could include
waste collection equipment and other operational logistics. These supports would be
systematically withdrawn as the volume of recyclables they collect and sell increases.
10. Conclusions
The menace of plastic waste is an enormous challenge to Nigeria and other devel-
oping countries. Proffering sustainable solutions can only be possible by exploring the
opportunities that the circular economy provides, which entails a holistic analysis of the
entire value chain. The current work reviews the status of the production, importation,
consumption, and end-of-life waste management of plastics and plastic products in Nige-
ria. The large volume of plastics and polymer products produced locally together with a
substantial volume imported in different polymer formats eventually yields a large volume
of waste. Nigeria lacks the essential resources and critical infrastructure to manage this
waste, which results in large quantities of it ending up in dumpsites, landfills, and marine
environments. The absence of data makes it difficult to quantify this waste and the asso-
ciated economic and environmental implications with certainty. Given these challenges,
Sustainability 2024,16, 7900 21 of 25
the current work proposes several circular economy principles that could be adopted,
such as the use of alternative materials, extended producer responsibilities, the adoption
of policy and economic instruments, the deployment of state-of-the-art waste treatment
facilities designed specifically for developing countries, the implementation of circular
business models, and industrial symbiosis. It is our opinion that the existing series of policy
guidelines which include environmental policy guidelines, solid waste policy guidelines,
and plastic waste policy guidelines should be harmonized for effective implementation.
The proposed circular economy measures, when articulated with the understanding that
they can be implemented with both bottom–up and top–down approaches at micro-, meso-,
and macrolevels, could limit the menace of single-use plastic variants.
Author Contributions: O.B.E. conceptualized, investigated, curated the research data, formally
analyzed the research data, and wrote the original draft of the manuscript. I.T.T. and C.O.U. curated
the research data and review of the manuscript. All authors have read and agreed to the published
version of the manuscript.
Funding: This research received no external funding.
Institutional Review Board Statement: Not applicable.
Informed Consent Statement: Not applicable.
Data Availability Statement: No new data were created or analyzed in this study.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
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