There’s a positive correlation between income and waste generation. High-income countries account for only 16% of the world’s population but more than one-third of the waste generated.

However, it’s the middle- and low-income countries that will lead to more waste generation by 2050, particularly in Asia and Africa.

Why is this?

As the World Bank explains, waste generation scales up as income levels rise.

For high-income countries, per capita waste generation is already peaking, and is expected to grow 19% by 2050.

On the other hand, low- and middle-income countries (where per capita waste is much lower but where incomes are rising quickly) could see their waste generation grow by 40%.