East African country Tanzania has imposed a ban on the use of plastic bags, as part of its efforts to reduce plastic waste.
Image: Tanzania has imposed ban on plastic bags to reduce plastic waste. Photo: courtesy of RitaE / Pixabay.
Tanzania is said to be the 34th African country that banned the importation, production, sale and use of plastic bags, according to the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP).
The UNEP statistics reveal that 127 countries across the globe have taken various measures under plastic bag legislation, of which 91 countries restricted manufacturing, importation and retail distribution,
The government has also informed tourists to submit plastic bags to the relevant authorities before entering the country.
As per new measures, any person using plastic bag will be imposed with a fine, while the persons involved in the manufacturing of those items will be jailed.
Kenya and Rwanda are the other African nations, which have implemented the same measures to eliminate on-biodegradable plastics.
In 2017, the Kenyan government made the use of plastic bags illegal, with anyone caught even using the material facing up to four years in jail.
Various countries across the globe are focusing on the reduction of plastic waste through implementing strict laws.
In January this year, South Korea launched a ban on disposable plastic bags to protect environment by reducing the use of non-biodegradable waste.
The country has taken the decision due to plastic waste handling crisis resulted after China imposed a ban on the import of plastic garbage.
In April this year, the New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a legislation to ban the sale of single-use plastic bags across the state.
In December 2018, the UK government announced that it committed to reduce the use of single-use plastics in schools across the country by 2022.
As part of this initiative, UK Education Secretary Damian Hinds has advised head-teachers in England to replace non-recyclable plastic items such as straws, bottles, bags and food packaging through sustainable alternatives.
In December same year, The New Zealand government announced plans to eliminate the use of single-use plastic shopping bags from 1 July 2019.
The ban will help decrease the greenhouse gas emissions associated with plastic bag production and disposal ranging from petroleum used to produce the bags to emissions from the transportation of bags to landfills.