{"id":57737,"date":"2025-06-05T09:13:38","date_gmt":"2025-06-05T09:13:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/?p=57737"},"modified":"2025-06-05T09:38:49","modified_gmt":"2025-06-05T09:38:49","slug":"ending-plastic-pollution-in-africa-a-matter-of-justice-for-african-women-and-communities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/blog\/57737\/ending-plastic-pollution-in-africa-a-matter-of-justice-for-african-women-and-communities\/","title":{"rendered":"Ending plastic pollution in Africa: a matter of justice for African women and communities"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<style>\naddress.single-post-author {\n    display: none !important;\n}\n<\/style>\n\n<div style=\"display: flex; align-items: center; background: #f4f4f4; padding: 32px; border-radius: 16px; box-shadow: 0px 6px 12px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1); max-width: 800px; margin: auto;\">\n    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/05\/32665aa4-screenshot-2025-05-16-at-13.30.35.png\" \n         alt=\"Sherie Gakii\" \n         style=\"width: 120px; height: 120px; border-radius: 50%; object-fit: cover; margin-right: 24px;\">\n    <div>\n        <p style=\"font-size: 24px; font-weight: bold; color: #333; margin: 0;\">Dr. Oulie Keita<\/p>\n        <p style=\"font-size: 18px; color: #555; margin: 8px 0 0;\">Greenpeace Africa Executive Director<\/p>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>In Nairobi\u2019s Dandora dumpsite, Joyce, a&nbsp; young mother rises each day not to farm her land or build her dream, but to scavenge through plastic waste to feed her children. Years of inhaling toxic fumes have damaged her lungs. Hospital visits are now part of her daily reality. Still, every morning, she returns to that mountain of waste, because she has no other choice.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"DUMPED: A WASTE PICKER&#039;S STORY\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-sN-ct36aTY?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n<p>Joyce\u2019s story is not an exception. It is the reality of too many African women whose lives are being shaped, and shortened, by a crisis they did not create. <strong><strong>Women in Africa are on the frontlines of the climate and plastic crisis<\/strong>,<\/strong> not just as victims but as the invisible backbone of communities striving to survive amidst environmental collapse.<\/p>\n\n<p><strong>This World Environment Day<\/strong>, marked under the theme <strong>\u201cEnding Plastic Pollution Globally,\u201d<\/strong> I am compelled to say: the world must do more than pay lip service to this crisis. The global plastic crisis may affect us all, but<strong> its impacts are not equally distributed.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"1000\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/77c9d369-dandora-dumpsite_86.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-57742\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/77c9d369-dandora-dumpsite_86.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/77c9d369-dandora-dumpsite_86-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/77c9d369-dandora-dumpsite_86-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/77c9d369-dandora-dumpsite_86-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/77c9d369-dandora-dumpsite_86-510x340.jpg 510w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n<p>Africa contributes the least to global plastic pollution, yet our rivers, coastlines, and cities are overflowing with it. Our markets are flooded with single-use plastics manufactured thousands of miles away. Our communities are turned into dumping grounds in the name of global trade. And the poorest, especially women, are left to deal with the toxic aftermath.<\/p>\n\n<p>This is not accidental. It is structural. It is a system that prioritizes corporate profit over human life. <strong>This is plastic colonialism<\/strong>. And it must end. <strong>That\u2019s why this week we took our message to Coca-Cola\u2019s corporate office in Johannesburg, South Africa.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p>At Greenpeace Africa, we refuse to be silent. Through our <strong>Plastic and waste colonialism<\/strong> campaign, we are demanding a different future, one where corporations are held accountable and communities, especially women, are protected and empowered.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/89bd2006-plastic-treaty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-57746\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/89bd2006-plastic-treaty.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/89bd2006-plastic-treaty-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/89bd2006-plastic-treaty-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/89bd2006-plastic-treaty-510x340.jpg 510w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n<p>Millions of<strong> people across the world<\/strong> have joined our call for a <strong>strong, binding Global Plastics Treaty.<\/strong> This treaty must not be another vague agreement. It must deliver justice.<\/p>\n\n<p>We are calling for a treaty that:<\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Caps and phases down global plastic production<\/strong>, starting with single-use plastics<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Holds polluters accountable<\/strong> across the entire plastics lifecycle, from extraction, production to disposal<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Bans toxic chemicals of concern used to make plastics <\/strong>and waste trade from high-income to low-income countries<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Prioritizes the needs of frontline communities<\/strong> like waste pickers, informal recyclers, and Indigenous Peoples<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Guarantees meaningful participation of African voices,<\/strong>&nbsp;especially women, in negotiations and implementation as well as a stable financial mechanism that will drive the treaty implementation<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Protects human health,<\/strong> especially in communities near incinerators, dumpsites, and plastic manufacturing zones<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns has-action-yellow-background-color has-background is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/e034ecb7-img_0392-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-57748\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/e034ecb7-img_0392-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/e034ecb7-img_0392-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/e034ecb7-img_0392-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/e034ecb7-img_0392-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/e034ecb7-img_0392-1025x1366.jpg 1025w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/e034ecb7-img_0392-255x340.jpg 255w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-africa-stateless\/2025\/06\/e034ecb7-img_0392-scaled.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Call for a plastic-free Africa<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Tell governments to champion a strong Global Plastics Treaty so that we can finally turn off the tap and end the age of plastic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/pages.greenpeaceafrica.org\/global-plastic-treaty\">SIGN THE PETITION<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>Because this isn\u2019t just about the environment.<strong> It\u2019s about dignity, health, and justice.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p>In Kenya, our documentary <em>\u201cDumped: A Waste Picker\u2019s Story\u201d<\/em> brought Joyce\u2019s voice to the global stage. In South Africa, we supported legal efforts to ban hazardous single-use plastics. Across Cameroon and Senegal, we are building grassroots power to demand systemic change. And at the <strong>UN Global Plastics Treaty negotiations<\/strong>, we are standing firm for <strong>solutions that are rooted in equity, science, and human rights.<\/strong> Women like Joyce are not passive recipients of aid. They are leading change, when given the chance. But they should not have to choose between survival and safety. And they should never bear the cost of a crisis they did not cause.<\/p>\n\n<p>So on this World Environment Day, I call on governments, businesses, and international institutions: <strong>End the delay. End the pollution. End the injustice.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p>Let this treaty be the turning point. For Africa, for women, for Joyce, and for the generations that follow. Let us move:<\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>From pledges to <strong>policies<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>From clean-ups to <strong>transformation<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>From corporate influence to <strong>community justice<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p><strong>A plastic-free future is not a dream. It is a decision. Let\u2019s make it together.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Millions of people across the world have joined our call for a strong, binding Global Plastics Treaty. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":83,"featured_media":57738,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"p4_og_title":"","p4_og_description":"","p4_og_image":"","p4_og_image_id":"","p4_seo_canonical_url":"","p4_campaign_name":"Plastic Free Future","p4_local_project":"","p4_basket_name":"Plastics","p4_department":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[30,46],"p4-page-type":[126],"class_list":["post-57737","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-protecttheenvironment","tag-plastics","tag-greenpeaceafrica","p4-page-type-blog"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57737","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/83"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57737"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57737\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57759,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57737\/revisions\/57759"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57738"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57737"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57737"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57737"},{"taxonomy":"p4-page-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/p4-page-type?post=57737"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}