Malaysia’s illegal e-waste trade has been making headlines in recent weeks, from major enforcement raids and large seizures at ports to corruption investigations involving senior officials. Authorities say the scale of the problem runs into billions of ringgit, raising serious concerns about pollution, public health, and enforcement gaps. In this first of a two part series on Illegal E-Waste in Malaysia, we take a closer look at what’s been happening with Wong Pui Yi, researcher with the Basel Action Network, and Mageswari Sangaralingam, the Honorary Secretary of both Sahabat Alam Malaysia and the Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) to explore these developments, and what they have revealed about the scale of the problem, and also the risks faced by communities and the environment. 

Image Credit: Astralis Technology