AN OPEN LETTER TO THOSE ATTENDING THE PLASTIC TREATY NEGOTIATIONS IN NAIROBI Dear representatives of the Africa Group, and all attending the plastics treaty negotiations (INC-3), We are archbishops, bishops, pastors, deacons, priests and church leaders from across the African continent, writing to you out of a concern for our brothers and sisters, and for the stewardship of God’s creation. At this significant time, as the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) comes to Africa, it is vital we work together to develop an ambitious and legally binding treaty on plastic pollution. Plastic use in Africa is spiralling out of control. In fact, it is growing faster in sub-Saharan Africa than in any other part of the world. If the current trend continues, the region will produce almost six times more plastic waste in 2060 than it did in 2019, and many countries do not have the capacity to manage it. Plastic waste is three times more likely to be mismanaged in sub-Saharan Africa than in the rest of the world. We’re facing mountains of plastic pollution, dumped or burnt across Africa. Yet, Jesus told his followers that even the smallest amount of faith can move mountains. We believe there is an alternative way forward. Over half of African countries have taken ambitious steps to lead the world in banning certain plastic products, such as bags and sachets. However, implementing these bans has proved challenging and plastic waste is still finding its way into our poorest neighbourhoods, affecting and infecting the most vulnerable in our communities. Some of those most impacted live in Nairobi, host city for the negotiations. Just a few miles away from the venue for INC-3, and just across the river from the populous area of Korogocho, stands the infamous Dandora dumpsite. The equivalent of 30 truckloads of plastic packaging is dumped there every day. This plastic waste is a breeding ground for mosquitoes, flies and vermin, increasing the risk of malaria, cholera, diarrhoeal disease and more. When plastic is openly burnt, it releases dangerous air pollutants that increase the risk of diseases such as heart disease, cancer, respiratory ailments, skin and eye diseases, and damage to the reproductive and nervous systems for those living nearby. The Nairobi river which flows alongside the Dandora dumpsite is heavily polluted yet many living both within Nairobi and downstream use its water for domestic and agricultural purposes. Dandora is also home to thousands of waste pickers. They perform a critical environmental service by recovering recyclable materials with little or no support and indeed play a central role in the recycling economy across Africa. Yet, many work under harsh conditions in open dump sites such as Dandora, often for years on end, and suffer respiratory and numerous other ailments as a result. Elsewhere in Africa, plastic waste is causing damage to soil and water quality, and threatening food production and the livelihoods of small-scale farmers who depend on livestock and crop production as their main source of income. A study in 2019 in Mponela, Malawi, found that 40 percent of slaughtered livestock had plastics in their gut. Dumped plastic across Africa also blocks drainages, contributing to flooding. In December 2022, more than 120 people were killed in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo, following heavy rains. Plastic waste blocked waterways, preventing the River Congo from draining properly, and flood waters reached people’s roofs, bringing the threat of waterborne diseases such as cholera and diarrhoea. Plastic pollution is also jeopardising over half of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals across Africa, including climate action, clean water and sanitation, and zero hunger. It is crucial this plastic treaty delivers real change for communities across Africa, and especially those living in poverty who are most impacted by the plastic pollution crisis. Africa faces challenges but also holds many solutions to plastic pollution: traditional practices of re-use and refill, pioneering recycling projects, and the integration of waste pickers in our waste management systems. The Africa Group has shown great leadership at the negotiations to date and has had significant influence on the content of the recently published zero draft. With this in mind, we call upon you, as African delegates to INC-3, to continue to speak out boldly in favour of those options included in the zero draft of the treaty which would: deliver ambitious, global, legally binding measures that reduce the amount of plastic produced and supplied in the first place provide universal access to environmentally sound waste collection and recycling prevent the dangerous waste management practices of open dumping and open burning reject false waste management solutions such as burning plastic in cement kilns ensure a just transition for waste pickers, including integrating them into mandatory, government-led Extended Producer Responsibility schemes As archbishops, bishops, pastors and church leaders from across the continent, we urge you to speak boldly as these negotiations come to Africa, and to call for a treaty which delivers change for our most vulnerable brothers and sisters. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. Signed by: More than 80 leaders, including 20 Archbishops, Bishops and regional leaders from twelve countries: Angola, Burkina Faso, Chad, DRC, Eswatini, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Seychelles, South Africa, Zambia Signatories: Primate and Archbishop Carlos S Matsinhe of Anglican Church of Mozambique and Angola Archbishop Jackson Nasoore Ole Sapit, Anglican Province of Kenya Bishop Augusto Domingos, Diocese of Cristo Rei (Christ the King), Angola Rev. Lubunga W’ehusha Venance, Bishop and Legal Representative of Free Methodist Church, DRC Bishop Dr Dalcy Dlamini, Bishop of the Anglican Church in Eswatini Bishop Dr Brighton Vita Malasa, Malawi Bishop Agostinho Roberto, Anglican Diocese of Maciene, Mozambique Bishop Sergio Bambo, Anglican Diocese of Tete, Mozambique Bishop Paulo Estevao Hansine, Anglican Diocese of Rio Pungue, Mozambique Bishop Lucas Mchema, Anglican Diocese of Niassa, Mozambique Bishop Vicente Msosa, Anglican Church in Mozambique Bishop Lucas Mchema, Pastor of the Anglican Church in Mozambique Bishop Stephen Diseko, Diocese of Matlosane, South Africa Bishop Luke Pretorius, Diocese of St Mark the Evangelist, South Africa Bishop
