Investing in solid waste management

The world’s cities produced 1.3 billion metric tons of waste in 2012 and will produce 2.2 billion metric tons by 2025. Almost half (44 percent) of this waste is plastic. Managing this waste will involve reducing, reusing, and recycling a good portion of it. Currently, recycling accounts for only 3.5 percent of global waste treatment and disposal, leaving the majority of waste unrecycled with 33 percent going to open dumps, and 25 percent going to “unspecified landfills” (World Bank Group 2018).