Municipal solid waste management in developing economies: A way forward

Abstract

This conceptual paper identifies how municipal solid waste management (MSWM) is currently being practiced in developing economies from an institutional perspective. Semi-systematic review of 934 peer-reviewed journal articles extracted from the Web of Science database is used as the foundation for this paper. The findings affirm that the current MSWM practices of most developing economies are either ineffective, inefficient, or limited. Hence, they are contributing to environmental, social, and economic negative impacts that can impede sustainable development. Though the literature highlights several remedies that could curtail the negative impacts of current MSWM practices, most developing economies are yet to engage with these due to numerous constraints. Special emphasis is on administrative constraints (or the norms, expectations, and requirements within the specific institutional field where MSWM is practiced in developing economies) that prevents adoption of new MSWM practices in developing economies. In this context, social movements can play a critical role in improving current MSWM practices. This paper makes recommendations for a way forward in which social movements could act as institutional entrepreneurs to change the norms, expectations, and requirements of the institutional field for a sustainable MSWM in developing economies.