Nigeria inundated with used computers

LARGE numbers of refurbished desktop computers and laptops still enter the Nigerian market despite regulations by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), and the Basel Convention on the control of hazardous waste and their disposal.

As a result of the economic implications of recycling in developed economies, Africa, especially Nigeria, has continued to be a dumping ground for either used or refurbished PCs.

Monitoring of Computer Village in Lagos revealed that students, low income earners, IT training institutions and business centres are the major patrons of refurbished PCs.

In as much as refurbished PCs have continued to be the toast of many low income earners, one major challenge of buying a refurbished PC, according to findings, is that it is not customized and do not feature the latest technology.

IDC analyst, Shane Rau, said most users would not notice much of a performance difference between, say, a 1.2 and a 1.7-GHz processor.

“The average PC user surfs the Internet, sends and receives e-mail, tracks finances, and maybe creates modest graphics.

“None of those tasks require any significant processor power; and by today’s speeds, any Athlon or Pentium 4 would be plenty,” Rau added.

For many buyers, refurbished PCs are as good as new one even without warranty.

“But the bottom line is giving you the service and nothing more. Nigeria is still embracing IT. We will get there. Things are hard and you not expect student like me to buy new PC.

“I have been using refurbished PC for more than a year now and it has never given me problems” Sunday Okeke, a student in Nigeria.

CHINEDU OKORO in Abuja, Nigeria