Will face crisis
The Ugandan government,
faced with the fact that no one wants to buy expensive new computers, has
hit on a wizard wheeze of making the sale of used computers illegal.
In
three months you will not be able to buy a used computer in the shops,
despite the fact that this market has been responsible for increased
computer literacy in the country. With prices of about a fifth of what a new
computer costs, the used market has been the only way that many
cash-strapped Ugandans can afford a PC.
Many Net Cafe's in the country are
also built using used computers. Many are saying that they will not be able
to afford to continue if they cannot buy used computers. The move will
have the positive effect of stopping the dumping of electronic waste in
Uganda. Many developed countries have been shipping electronic waste
claiming that it is 'charity' and citing the booming used computer market as
a justification.
But the used computers often do not work for a long time and
when their time is up, Uganda has to dump the stuff.