Govt to ban single-use plastic
Effective 2026 or earlier
The minister said single-use plastics are not worth destroying the earth, adding that smarter choices need to be made in this regard.
The environment ministry is planning to implement a recommendation to ban single-use plastic in Namibia, effective 2026 or earlier.
In a statement to the National Assembly, minister Pohamba Shifeta said this ban will follow a draft road map and will apply to certain single-use plastics.
According to him, consultations were conducted with stakeholders through the national solid waste management advisory panel and consensus was reached to implement the ban.
The single-use plastic products include thin imported plastic shopping bags of less than 40 microns as well as plastic shopping bags that contain calcium carbonate.
A recommendation was made to ban these by the end of the 2023/2024 financial year.
Another product on the ban list is single-use plastic drink bottles, set to be banned by 1 January 2025, while single-use plastic straws will to be banned by 1 January 2024.
Lastly, plastic cotton ear buds will also be banned by 1 January 2024, and this will include the import sale and commercial supply.
Not worth it
Shifeta said there are evident examples of how plastics have impacted animals such as livestock and wildlife in Namibia, with mortalities reported as a result of plastic ingestion.
“Most of the plastic waste ends up in our oceans and accumulate in our food chains through the fish and sea products we consume.”
He added that single-use plastics are not worth destroying the earth.
“Smarter choices need to be made when it comes to buying and selling single-use plastic products.”
The minister said humans produce over 430 million tonnes of plastic annually, two-thirds of which are short-lived products that soon become waste.
The social and economic costs of plastic pollution range between US$300 to US$600 billion per year, he added.
According to a recent United Nations Environment Programme report, plastic pollution could reduce by 80% by 2040 if countries and companies make deep policy decisions to end production and usage of single use plastics and promote market shifts using existing technologies.
“Plastic pollution is a global problem. Approximately seven billion of the 9.2 billion tonnes of plastic produced worldwide from 1950 to 2017 became plastic waste and ended up in landfills,” the report read.
In a statement to the National Assembly, minister Pohamba Shifeta said this ban will follow a draft road map and will apply to certain single-use plastics.
According to him, consultations were conducted with stakeholders through the national solid waste management advisory panel and consensus was reached to implement the ban.
The single-use plastic products include thin imported plastic shopping bags of less than 40 microns as well as plastic shopping bags that contain calcium carbonate.
A recommendation was made to ban these by the end of the 2023/2024 financial year.
Another product on the ban list is single-use plastic drink bottles, set to be banned by 1 January 2025, while single-use plastic straws will to be banned by 1 January 2024.
Lastly, plastic cotton ear buds will also be banned by 1 January 2024, and this will include the import sale and commercial supply.
Not worth it
Shifeta said there are evident examples of how plastics have impacted animals such as livestock and wildlife in Namibia, with mortalities reported as a result of plastic ingestion.
“Most of the plastic waste ends up in our oceans and accumulate in our food chains through the fish and sea products we consume.”
He added that single-use plastics are not worth destroying the earth.
“Smarter choices need to be made when it comes to buying and selling single-use plastic products.”
The minister said humans produce over 430 million tonnes of plastic annually, two-thirds of which are short-lived products that soon become waste.
The social and economic costs of plastic pollution range between US$300 to US$600 billion per year, he added.
According to a recent United Nations Environment Programme report, plastic pollution could reduce by 80% by 2040 if countries and companies make deep policy decisions to end production and usage of single use plastics and promote market shifts using existing technologies.
“Plastic pollution is a global problem. Approximately seven billion of the 9.2 billion tonnes of plastic produced worldwide from 1950 to 2017 became plastic waste and ended up in landfills,” the report read.
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