Accra,Ghana
Accra is the capitol of Ghana, and together with Tema, it forms the Greater Accra Region. Ghana’s largest deep-sea harbor is located in Tema. This is where the container will begin its journey towards Europe.
Swiss commodity trader Trafigura is selling toxic fuel to Africa – with dramatic consequences for people’s health. Together, we are taking on the polluters by returning a container filled with toxic air from Ghana to the sender.
Accra,Ghana
Accra is the capitol of Ghana, and together with Tema, it forms the Greater Accra Region. Ghana’s largest deep-sea harbor is located in Tema. This is where the container will begin its journey towards Europe.
Antwerp,Belgium
Europe’s second largest seaport is located in Antwerp. From there, the container full of dirty air will make its way to Basel.
Geneva,Switzerland
The container will travel through Switzerland and will be delivered to Trafigura in Geneva.
Matar N
Year of construction: 2014
Length: 228 meters
Width: 32 meters
Deadweight: 46998 tonns
Accra,Ghana
Accra is the capitol of Ghana, and together with Tema, it forms the Greater Accra Region. Ghana’s largest deep-sea harbor is located in Tema. This is where the container will begin its journey towards Europe.
Antwerp,Belgium
Europe’s second largest seaport is located in Antwerp. From there, the container full of dirty air will make its way to Basel.
Geneva,Switzerland
The container will travel through Switzerland and will be delivered to Trafigura in Geneva.
Matar N
Year of construction: 2014
Length: 228 meters
Width: 32 meters
Deadweight: 46998 tonns
Even today, air pollution in African cities is a serious problem. A large part of the damaging particulate matter in the air is generated by cars. Although in relative terms, Africa has fewer cars than Europe, toxic emissions are higher because the fuel contains vastly more sulphur that causes particulate matter.
High levels of air pollution have serious consequences for human health. Respiratory diseases are one of the main reasons why people in Accra, Ghana, are hospitalized. Unless the sulphur content of fuels in Africa is lowered dramatically, an estimated 31,000 people will die prematurely in 2030. That is three times the number of deaths caused by traffic-related air pollution in Europe, the US and Japan combined. Countless people will suffer from cardio-vascular diseases and cancer.
Fuel standards in most parts of Africa are much weaker than in Europe. Public Eye collected samples from eight countries to find out how much sulphur the locally available diesel actually contains. The result is shocking: the sulphur content was up to 378 times higher than the European limit. We also found other health damaging substances such as benzene or polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in concentrations not permitted in Europe.
Swiss commodity trading companies like market leader Trafigura dominate the dirty business with toxic fuels for Africa. They supply the fuels, distribute and sell them locally through their own network of petrol stations and even produce the dirty mixtures themselves. They have no interest in improved regulatory standards because their profit margins depend on their ability to exploit weak African standards to the fullest.
While the business model of the Swiss commodity traders is legal, their actions are clearly illegitimate and violate human rights because their profit comes at the expense of the health of millions of Africans. Africans have the same right to health as the rest of us.
Join us in putting an end to this unjust business model.