Accra turns daily plastic waste into low-cost road blocks

Nelson Boateng’s firm Nelplast converts up to 300 tons of plastic collected each day in Accra into sand-mixed paving blocks that sell for less than traditional concrete.

The capital of Ghana discards between 300 and 450 tons of plastic each day, with only a small fraction reaching recycling facilities. Nelson Boateng, a computer network engineering graduate, founded Nelplast to turn this waste into paving material by shredding, washing, drying and mixing the plastic with sand before extrusion. Collectors—over 500 individuals, 60 % of whom are women—sell the plastic to the firm for roughly ten cents per kilo, turning street litter into income.

The finished blocks, priced at about $1 each, are cheaper and more durable than conventional concrete, and have been installed at sites such as the Ministry of Environment’s frontage and streets in Ashaiman. Despite the concept’s promise, the plant produces only around 200 blocks daily due to limited equipment and delayed government support under the One District, One Factory programme. The approach mirrors earlier Indian experiments that blend plastic with asphalt, though Nelplast’s method omits bitumen entirely.