The Africa Institute executes a wide range of national and regional projects aimed at strengthening the environmentally sound management of hazardous chemicals and wastes. These initiatives assist member states in meeting their obligations under the Basel, Stockholm, Rotterdam, and Minamata Conventions.
Major Ongoing Projects
Disposal of PCB oils contained in transformers and disposal of capacitors containing PCB in Southern Africa
Region: Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe
To reduce environmental and human health risks from PCB releases through the demonstration of a regional approach to the introduction of cost‐effective and socially acceptable environmentally sound management (ESM) of PCB oils, equipment and wastes held by electrical utilities and other PCB owners in participating countries.
Environmentally Sound Management and Disposal of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in the Republic of South Africa
Region: South Africa
To reduce and eliminate the use and releases of PCBs to the environment through development and implementation of the environmentally sound management (ESM) and disposal of PCBs and PCB-contaminated oil, equipment, and wastes in South Africa.
Promotion of Circular Economy in the Textile and Garment Sector through Sustainable Management of Chemicals and Waste in Lesotho, Madagascar, South Africa and Ethiopia
Region: Ethiopia, Lesotho, Madagascar and South Africa
To promote a circular economy in the textile and garment (TG) industry by phasing out hazardous chemicals, improving resource efficiency, supporting sustainable product design, and reducing industrial pollution. It also assists developing and transitioning economies in meeting multilateral environmental agreement obligations.
Testing of inventory guidance of plastic waste and testing of technical guidelines on the ESM of plastic waste
Region: Kenya
To pilot and validate methodologies and technical guidelines for plastic waste management in Kenya by testing the plastics inventory approach and assessing the practical application of environmentally sound management (ESM) measures for plastic waste.
Integrated Health and Environment Observatories and legal and institutional strengthening for the Sound Management of chemicals in Africa (African ChemObs)
Region: Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe
To contribute to improved health and environment through strengthening national and regional institutions, and implementing priority chemicals and waste related interventions.
National Action Plan for the Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining (ASGM) Sector in South Africa (NAP – ASGM)
Region: South Africa
To assist the Government of South Africa in the development of its National Action Plan for the Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining (ASGM) sector, raise awareness on the Minamata Convention, and to build national capacity for the early implementation of the National Action Plan and the Minamata Convention.
Promoting circularity and resource efficiency in the electronics value chain across Southern African countries (SADC GEM Project)
Region: Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, South Africa
To reduce the adverse impacts of POPs, uPOPs and heavy metal (such as mercury) on human health and environment across the life cycle of electrical and electronic equipment in SADC countries.
A community approach to plastic waste management, recycling and awareness raising in the City of Johannesburg
Region: Johannesburg, South Africa
To improve the management of plastic waste in partner countries through increased knowledge, capacity and engagement among decision makers and other stakeholders on the control of transboundary movement (TBM) and environmentally sound management (ESM) of plastic waste in line with the Basel Convention, in particular the Basel Convention Plastic Waste Amendments.
Review and Update of the National Implementation Plan for the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)
Region: Ethiopia, Malawi and Zambia
Facilitate the implementation of the Stockholm Convention in participating countries through the development, review and update of the NIPs and submission to the Conference of the Parties (COP) of the Convention.
Strengthening knowledge and capacity to prevent and reduce releases of plastic waste
Region: Malawi and Zimbabwe
To protect human health and the environment from plastic waste, thus contributing to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets 3.9, 5.1, 6.3 and 11.6, 12.4 and 14.1.
Strengthening implementation of the Rotterdam Convention and establishing a registration system for industrial chemicals
Region: Lesotho
To strengthen implementation of the Rotterdam Convention and establish a registration system for industrial chemicals in Lesotho, in line with PoW Activity No. 15, thereby contributing to protect human health and the environment from potential harm from certain hazardous chemicals.
Enabling Activities & Completed Projects
We have successfully delivered numerous projects and enabling activities that have laid the groundwork for convention implementation and environmental protection across the region.
SADC Open Burning POPs Reduction
Region: SADC Region
Promotion of Best Available Techniques (BAT) and Best Environmental Practices (BEP) for reducing releases of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) from open burning in SADC countries.
SADC Regional Plastic Waste Strategy
Region: SADC Region
Development of a regional strategy towards the environmentally sound management and controlled transboundary movement of plastic waste across SADC member states.
Motherwell Sustainability Hub
Region: South Africa (Motherwell)
Establishment of an Integrated Waste Management ‘Sustainability Hub’ in Motherwell, Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality, promoting localized green entrepreneurship and environmental protection.
Environmentally Sound Management of Plastics in Zambia
Region: Zambia
Promotion of the Environmentally Sound Management (ESM) of plastics in Zambia to combat plastic pollution and strengthen local waste management capacity.
Minamata Convention Initiatives
- Mercury Initial Assessments (MIAs): Successfully completed in South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana, Eswatini, and Namibia to support early implementation of the Minamata Convention.
- NAP-ASGM: Developed National Action Plans for Artisanal and Small Scale Gold Mining in Burundi, Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Kenya, Eswatini, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Strategic Cooperation & Small Grants
Cooperation with KEMI
In partnership with the Swedish Chemicals Agency (KEMI), we provide capacity building on the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) for classification and labelling of chemicals, as well as support for developing legislation and management systems.
Small Grants Programmes
Collaborating with the Secretariats of the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions to implement targeted small grant projects that improve waste management at the local level.
