Report Trade and the Circular Economy: Plastics Action in South Africa
Report Trade and the Circular Economy: Plastics Action in South Africa
On Monday, Global Plastic Action Partnership, a platform at the World Economic Forum presented the report titled, Trade and Circular Economy: Plastics Action in South Africa. This publication was co-written by TheRockGroup and Tralac (Trade Law Center).
Key points for circularity of plastics in South-Africa
Different stakeholders from the trade, plastic, environmental, and sustainability industries discussed the necessary steps to achieve a circular economy for plastics in South Africa. Some key points that were raised/agreed upon were that circularity asks for:
- A country wise assessment with a regional outlook
- Standardization: harmonized standards for recyclable and reusable plastics
- Collaboration of all stakeholders e.g governments, customs, manufacturers, distributors, supermarkets, customers, plastic reclaimers
- Creation and enforcement of homogeneous/uniform labels and definitions of types of plastics
- Revamped trade agreements e.g, mainstreaming of circularity clauses in trade agreements
- Enhanced management of plastic and plastic waste at the borders
- More data, and more transparency
Findings of the publication
A sneak peek at the findings of the publication:
- South Africa has the potential to be a regional leader in plastic recycling and circularity
- Single use plastics for fast moving goods are growing exponentially in SA
- Most packaging in SA is not designed for recyclability or reuse
- SA faces the challenge of poor waste management infrastructure
- SA needs to review import and export quotas, why are imports more than exports?
- South Africa needs to speed up their plastic game
Do you want to rethink plastics and learn from your peers, experts and pioneers? Join the 7th annual Circular Economy Conference on the 26th of October. Looking for advice for your specific situation? Get in touch with us and we will match you with one of our expert consultants.
