In Ampefiloha, the electronic waste market is bustling with constant activity. Every day, crowds gather here—on one side, those looking to offload old phones, broken televisions, obsolete computers, or lamps; on the other, bargain hunters searching for rare second-hand spare parts. Nothing goes to waste in this improvised market in Ampefiloha. Traders recover every component. “We sell the motherboards directly to a Chinese company. As for the rest, it’s a case-by-case basis: phone batteries are sold individually, while screens and casings are snapped up by repairmen or individuals looking for spare parts,” explains Jean Jacques, one of the vendors.
The market is lucrative. Romain, a merchant on-site, smiles as he testifies: “If the stock is available, I can sell up to two hundred motherboards in a single day. In reality, it’s the supply that’s lacking, not the demand!”
Mysterious Provenance
To maximize their earnings, everything is meticulously sorted. Motherboards are sold wholesale to a Chinese company at a premium price of 12,000 ariary each. The rest is sold retail: batteries go for between 2,000 and 3,000 ariary, while screens and casings are sold for 1,500 ariary to passing tinkerers.
The origin of these devices remains completely mysterious and raises significant doubts. “We buy them right here; there are people who come specifically to sell them,” the vendors state. Despite the opacity that sparks serious suspicions of theft, the vendors are not concerned in the slightest. They have found an effective loophole to avoid prosecution.
“To avoid any risk associated with receiving stolen goods, we dismantle the phones as soon as we acquire them,” confesses Romain, who claims to disassemble no fewer than seventy phones per day.
In any case, they remain untroubled. No searches for suspected theft seem to take place there. Regardless, this market provides a livelihood for many families. Dozens of people make a living through this trade, which they learned on the job as self-taught workers. “I earn at least 30,000 ariary a day here, which allows me to provide for my family,” says Ramika, a young father.
The downside: the area is revoltingly filthy and heavily pollutes the Ampefiloha neighborhood.
By Miangaly Ralitera
Captured & Published at: 2026-06-20 07:00:25 (Madagascar Local Time EAT)
Original Source: https://www.lexpress.mg/2026/06/environnement-le-recyclage-des-dechets.html