101 East

Asia’s Pandemic Waste Emergency

101 East explores how Southeast Asia is struggling to cope with thousands of tonnes of medical waste during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As Southeast Asia suffers deadly new outbreaks of COVID-19, thousands of tonnes of medical waste are piling up, overwhelming nations ill-equipped to deal with this mounting pandemic side effect.

In Cambodia, workers wearing little protection sort through used bandages, gloves and syringes before incinerating them.

In Indonesia, syringes and medical bottles are turning up in landfills as health clinics struggle to dispose of their pandemic waste.

101 East investigates the hidden medical waste disaster affecting Southeast Asia.