WCEF 2022: Rwanda unveils US$221M circularity action plan for African waste

08 Dec 2022 --- As the 6th World Circular Economy Forum (WCEF) 2022 in Kigali, Rwanda, concludes, PackagingInsights presents the event outtakes, including the host government’s 14-year US$211.3 million circular economy action plan for African waste management.

On the first day of the event, Rwanda published its first Circular Economy Action Plan and Road Map, providing 17 concrete policy interventions and a clear direction to achieve carbon neutrality and climate resilience.

“Enabled through the financial support granted by the UN Development Programme, the Ministry of Environment is proud to present the National Circular Economy Action Plan for Rwanda,” the action plan outlines.

The action plan envisions that by 2035 Rwanda’s economy will have placed circularity at its core, ensuring the retention of resources and eliminating waste and pollution while regenerating natural systems.

“Investing in the circular economy is an investment in climate action, biodiversity protection, supply chain security, innovation as well as job creation and skills development,” says Jeanne d’Arc Mujawamariya, Rwanda’s minister of environment.

Organized in the Global South for the first time, under the theme “From Africa to the World,” the focus of this year’s forum is providing solutions for harnessing opportunities to improve livelihoods and end poverty, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, adapt to climate change and safeguard biodiversity.

Rwanda's minister of environment, Mujawamariya at the WCEF 2022 (Image Credit: Rwanda Government).Building a resilient economy
WCEF 2022 is co-organized by the African Circular Economy Alliance (ACEA), the Republic of Rwanda, the African Circular Economy Network (ACEN) and Sitra – the Finnish Innovation Fund that initiated the forum in partnership with Finland in 2017, with international partners.

“Transitioning to a circular economy is a way to make our economies wiser, resilient and future-proof,” says Jyrki Katainen, president of Sitra. 

“These past years’ tragedies have shown that we are not resilient. The impacts of the pandemic, shifts in the global security environment, and energy and food security are exacerbated by a fossil fuel-dependent, wasteful and unfair linear economy.”

“Now, we need to challenge the old model and build a new one, fit for today and the centuries to come – the circular economy. Many solutions are already in front of us, and we look forward to learning more about circular solutions from Africa in Kigali,” asserts Katainen.

Addressing Africa’s packaging industry
According to WCEF, demand for packaging in Africa is growing, driven by low costs and growth in local industries – notably, agro-processing. Sixteen countries in Africa have banned single-use plastics and are introducing measures to enforce the ban.

ACEA’s report, The Five Big Bets for Africa’s path to circularity, reports that 90% of waste in African countries is disposed of in uncontrolled dumpsites and landfills, while 13% of African municipal solid waste is plastic and is dumped instead of recycled.

Moreover, US$80 – US$120 billion is the annual loss to the global economy of reduced plastic value after initial use. For immediate opportunity, ACEA suggests recycling plastic packaging to increase circularity within the industry.

To make the packaging industry in Africa more circular, it is spotlighting the production of bioplastics using plant-based material as an alternative, rather than petroleum used in conventional plastics. In addition, the development of global, industry wide standards for plastic product design, such as monomaterial or the production of transparent (non-colored) plastics, is recommended.

ACEA also suggests utilizing reusable business-to-business (B2B) packaging that can be used in pooled systems across companies and industries, increasing recycling through innovative bottle deposit systems and incentivizing investments in recycling facilities through legislation and tax incentives.Over 90% of waste in African countries is disposed of in uncontrolled dumpsites and landfills (Image Credit: UNEP).

For climate and nature
Reflecting on the outcomes of COP27, Davinah Milenge, principal program coordinator at the African Development Bank, highlighted the importance of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) not becoming additional policy targets that replicate existing work but rather help integrate the circular economy in current areas to ensure more effective policy outcomes.

According to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) NDCs are the “heart of the Paris Agreement.” They are submitted every five years to the UNFCCC secretariat by each participating country to outline and communicate their post-2020 climate action.

“I think we saw the leadership of the continent and with Egypt launching the Global Initiative on Waste, 50 by 2050. I think this is key for the circular economy,” said Adriana Zacarias Farah, head at Go4SDGs, and deputy head at 10YFP secretariat, UNEP.

“We need a wide system transformation. If we mainstream the circular economy with renewable energy and energy efficiency, we can reach the goal of 1.5-degrees celsius. Suppose we focus on five key sectors [food systems, packaging, built environment, electronics, and fashion and textiles]. In that case, we can reduce the carbon footprint by 60% and nature footprint by 80%,” Farah underscored.

By Radhika Sikaria