The role of households in solid waste management in East Africa capital cities

Book excerpt: Household solid waste management is a severe problem in East Africa capital cities. Domestic actors tend to be neglected in their role in solving the problem. This book develops a new conceptual framework for analyzing the role of households in solid waste management in East Africa's capital cities. This conceptual framework is derived from the theory of the Modernized Mixture Approach. By focusing on households in informal settlements in particular, domestic routines for handling wastes are analyzed for their technical and social dimensions. By elaborating upon the technical and social aspects of domestic solid wastes and the role of householders in producing and handling these wastes, this book adds to the scanty body of scientific knowledge of sustainable waste management by householders in East African countries. The knowledge generated with respect to technical and social dimensions can be used in the future by researchers and policy makers in SWM policies both in East Africa and comparable situations elsewhere in the world.