Present Status of Environmentally Sound Management of Chemicals in Africa

1. Present Status of Environmentally Sound Management of Chemicals in Africa Cleo MIGIRO Cleaner Production Centre of Tanzania and Africa Roundtable on Sustainable Consumption and Production Shem WANDIGA, Vincent MADADI and Peterson OLUM Centre for Science and Technology Innovation, University of Nairobi Rene VAN BERKEL United Nations Industrial Development Organization Presentation to the 6th Session of the Committee on Food Security and Sustainable Development (CFSSD-6), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 29 October 2009

2. Outline Scope of Review Background National Findings Present Status Implementation Challenges Conclusions Recommendations Africa’s Expectations

3. Scope of Review A desk top study to: Review international agreements and specific commitments therein for environmentally sound management of chemicals in Africa Review status, effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability of international policy and best practice initiatives with regard to environmentally sound management of chemicals in Africa Give a comparative assessment of the present status of environmentally sound management of chemicals in four African countries Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa and Tanzania

4. Background Use of chemicals is widespread and increasing in Africa Areas of use include agriculture, industry, control of vector borne diseases, household products, water quality and sanitation services Specific concerns include Importation of hazardous and obsolete chemicals and products containing such chemicals Limited and/or non-availability of scientific and technological capacities to safely handle chemicals Lack and/or limited harmonization of policies and regulations at sub-regional and regional levels Chemical management challenges due to rising population, urbanisation(sanitation), disease prevalence (and changes therein), modernisation of agriculture and (industrial) development, safe and quality water needs

5. Production, Use, Storage and Disposal Africa trades in raw materials with little value addition Chemicals and petroleum industries contribute 3-40% of GDP The chemical industry is relatively undeveloped except in Northern and Southern African countries Rain-fed agriculture provides backbone of economy Major source of hazardous and persistent substances in environment Characterised by inappropriate agricultural practices, lack of modern technology and techniques, disastrous climatic conditions, lack of awareness on the use of harmful products, lack of adequate laws and monitoring schemes on chemicals use Importation of chemicals is on the rise Many countries have large (and partly unknown) stocks of obsolete pesticides and other chemicals which cannot be disposed of safely

6. Multilateral Environmental Agreements Four main international conventions: Basel Convention Montreal Protocol Rotterdam Convention Stockholm Convention Domestication and development of National Implementation Plans (NIPs) remain slow, except for Stockholm Convention Diversity and scope are beyond immediate absorption and implementation capacity of many African countries  Slow pace of implementation  Need to harmonise and integrate MEAs with risk-based prioritization of commitments at national level Lack of implementation of Bamako Convention due to lack of means of implementation  Secretariat and financial and/or other instruments needed

7. Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) SAICM has comprehensive scope and ambitious goal of sound chemicals management by 2020 in line with the goals of the JPoI Multi-stakeholder and multi-sectoral initiative Endorsement at highest political levels Effective engagement of stakeholders Civil society and private sector Emphasis on chemicals as a sustainable development issue Efforts towards resource mobilization to build developing country capacity Formal endorsement or recognition by the governing bodies of intergovernmental organizations

8. National Findings/1 Legislative framework All countries are at different stages of putting in place relevant environmental legislation to support implementation of the MEAs Enforcement of regulations for protecting human health and environment lags behind Chemicals’ legislation is recent in most countries and typically lacks proper coordination among agencies responsible for different parts of life cycle of chemicals use Sources of Chemicals Chemical production and formulation industries vary from one country to another depending on the socio-economic activities and endowments of natural resources

9. National Findings/2 National Chemical Profiles Are in different stages of development, among the four countries led by South Africa Africa Stockpile programme has assisted with destruction of some obsolete pesticide stockpiles Globally Harmonized System (GHS) Implementation of GHS is at different stages in the four countries Capacity National Cleaner Production Centres active are in three of the countries in assisting businesses and other organisations to improve chemicals management Awareness Creation Advocacy for environmentally sound management of chemicals is still weak

10. Present Status/1 Many countries have put in place sectoral policies and institutions for environmentally sound management of chemicals E.g. environmental management acts and associated institutions The approach is so far, sector-wise, mainly through national secretariats of the MEAs on chemicals National Cleaner Production Centres provide capacity for sound chemicals management particularly in businesses and other organisations Limited quantification of chemicals flows, including obsolete stocks and hazardous compounds, inhibits planning and monitoring for chemicals management

11. Present Status/2 Despite ratification, pace of domestication of MEAs remains slow Good potential exists for cooperation and coordination at sub-regional level Nationally directed technical assistance over-shadows implementation potential of MEAs at regional and sub-regional levels Africa has made good progress in phasing out leaded petrol but vigilance against other sources of lead and other metals is required Awareness of possible risks posed by chemicals is still low among major segments of African population  augmented by general lack of data on chemicals use and safe use practices that prevent or minimise adverse impacts on human health and environment

12. Present Status/3 Growing recognition for the role of industries in chemicals management Own and/or can access technological and management capacity and finance Inappropriate management by firms poses avoidable risks to humans and environment Praiseworthy voluntary programmes Including e.g. Responsible Care, Enviromark

13. Implementation Challenges and Constraints • Access to coherent information on chemicals and methods and technologies for their environmentally sound use and disposal • Cooperation in development and transfer of technology of safe chemical substitutes and in development of capacity for their production • Harmonisation of trade, industry, agriculture, environment, health and chemical policies • Strengthening of institutions and policy making processes, ensuring that chemicals management is being mainstreamed in national plans, strategies and programmes

14. Implementation Challenges (MEAs) Lack of national and regional chemicals management policy and programs Limited or complete lack of collaboration among countries in the region Lack of financial support to maintain established activities in the region Lack of adequate capacity of existing regional structures such as the Stockholm Convention/Basel Regional Centres Limited involvement of regional structures such as AU-NEPAD, UNECA and AfDB programmes dealing with environmental and health issues Lack of regional approaches to the management of hazardous chemicals in relation to environmental and health issues on the continent Lack of chemical management issues in national and regional development agendas Lack of collaboration within programs with more or less similar objectives

15. Conclusions/1 Legislation and policies have been developed and enacted, but at present implementation and enforcement are insufficient to prevent illegal dumping which contaminates air, water and land and poses risks to human health Some countries have not yet developed and submitted their National Implementation Plans on chemicals or not even ratified all major chemicals conventions There is a general lack of information on chemicals and hence limited advocacy on environmental and health aspects, in turn contributing to mismanagement and continued use of chemicals banned elsewhere Most African countries are chemicals importers, with no manufacturing or export of chemicals Development priorities are food security, basic health, primary education and poverty reduction, leading to less emphasis on chemical management

16. Conclusions/2 Praiseworthy progress made in cleaning up some existing stockpiles of obsolete chemicals (e.g. through ASP), but pace is slow due to limited resources Should cover agriculture, industry and other significant chemical users Control of endemic diseases, particularly Malaria, is still critically dependent on use of hazardous chemicals like DDT Lack of comprehensive monitoring of chemical contaminants (e.g. POPs) in the environment prevents effective planning of remediation activities Lack of comprehensive records of health impacts as a result of poisoning with chemicals and heavy metals, although some data on pesticides poisoning exist Most African countries are not yet able to implement risk-based chemicals management due to lack of monitoring, risk analysis and evaluation capacities Limited collaboration of government with private sector and civil society presents a barrier toward sound chemicals management

17. Recommendations/1 Strengthen legislative framework of the African countries in order to implement environmentally sound management of chemicals Strengthen institutional capacities of the national and regional institutions to implement environmentally sound management of chemicals. Support awareness creation and advocacy activities in the African countries to educate the public on adverse effects of hazardous chemicals Promote application of environmentally sound technologies (including BAT/BEPs) in industrial and agricultural activities in the region as well as enhancing application of green technologies in the region

18. Recommendations/2 Support mainstreaming and implementation of MEAs and environmentally sound management of chemicals into national and regional development agenda such as poverty reduction strategies Strengthen and expand existing programmes and initiatives on destruction of obsolete chemicals and decontamination of contaminated sites Support development of affordable and effective alternatives to banned chemicals such as DDT and Lindane given their importance for public health and agricultural development in Africa Support implementation of comprehensive inventories of chemicals in African countries to facilitate planning and management of chemicals

19. Expectations from Africa African countries Expect continuous support for sustainable industrial development and greening of their industry and economy Environmentally sound management of chemicals to become an integral element of financial, technical and other support provided by development partners Stand to benefit from enhanced compliance with provisions of MEAs Banning or otherwise preventing trade and/or transfer of obsolete technologies and hazardous waste and chemicals Requires capacity building Acknowledge that their effective participation and engagement in international chemicals negotiations have been limited and are therefore concerned that their national development needs and priorities may not have been addressed adequately in past negotiations Proliferation of meetings under MEAs Requires capacity building of African negotiators

20. Thank You Cleaner and Sustainable Production Unit Environmental Management Branch PO Box 300, A 1400 Vienna, Austria R.VanBerkel@unido.org www.unido.org/cp