BERLIN, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The German minister for economic cooperation and development Gerd Mueller has called for an immediate ban on plastic bags in order to push forward in the global fight against plastic waste.

"The ban on plastic straws is not enough," Mueller told the German newspaper Augsburger Allgemeine on Friday, adding that "Germany should not wait for Europe and immediately ban disposable plastic bags".

The German minister also referred to the example of some African countries where plastic bags are already banned.

"What Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda can do, we must do," he said. "If we continue like this, we will sink under the garbage."

German Environment Minister Svenja Schulze recently called for an international ban on the export of unsorted plastic waste.

Almost one tenth of plastic waste produced in Germany is currently exported, with trade and industry accounting for the largest proportion, according to the German environment ministry.

Consumption of plastic bags in Germany has fallen to 29 bags per person per year in 2017 compared to 45 per person before many German companies introduced a fee for plastic bags in 2016, according to the society for packaging market research (GVM).