Public awareness and behavioural drivers of electric waste disposal in urban Ghana

¹ Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Accra Technical University, Accra, Ghana
² Department of Data Science and Analytics, Thrive Africa, Accra, Ghana
³ Department of Mechanical Engineering, Accra Technical University, Accra, Ghana

Abstract

E-waste disposal practices in urban Ghana remain poorly characterised at the population level, particularly for households and small businesses. This study examines how public awareness and behavioural determinants shape formal e-waste disposal in Accra and Kumasi, drawing on a quantitative cross-sectional survey of 384 participants. Applying the Knowledge-Attitude-Practice (KAP) framework alongside the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), binary logistic regression was used to identify independent predictors of formal disposal. Some 61.7% of respondents rated their own knowledge as low to moderate, and only 8.9% reported using formal disposal channels. Awareness of health risks was the strongest predictor of formal disposal (OR = 3.41; p < 0.001), followed by prior e-waste education (OR = 2.87) and perceived behavioural control (OR = 2.39). Proximity to a collection point was an independent structural predictor (OR = 2.10). As the first large-sample quantitative KAP assessment in this context, the study argues that expanding take-back infrastructure and introducing deposit-refund schemes are likely to shift behaviour more effectively than awareness campaigns alone.