South Africa
South Africa, situated at the southern tip of the African continent, is a country of remarkable diversity, both culturally and environmentally. It boasts a rich tapestry of landscapes, from the iconic Table Mountain and the Kruger National Park to vast savannahs and coastlines along the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. With over 60 million people across nine provinces, South Africa has a dynamic economy that spans mining, agriculture, manufacturing, and services, making it the most industrialized nation on the continent. However, rapid urbanization, industrial growth, and consumption have placed increasing pressure on the environment, particularly in terms of waste generation and management. In response to these challenges, South Africa has implemented Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) under the National Environmental Management: Waste Act. Through this framework, sectors such as packaging, electronics, batteries, and lighting are contributing to a more sustainable, circular economy, reducing landfill dependence and promoting environmental stewardship across the country.
Legal basis
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South Africa’s EPR regime is grounded in the National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 (NEM:WA, Act No. 59 of 2008), which gives the Minister powers to identify products and require producer take-back and lifecycle obligations (notably via section 18 and the Minister’s regulation-making powers).
Building on the Act, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) published the Extended Producer Responsibility Regulations (GN R.1184, Government Gazette No. 43879) on 5 November 2020(commencement and later amendments mean many provisions came into force on 5 May 2021). Those Regulations set the national framework for how producers must register, design EPR schemes, report, finance schemes, and be audited; they also require schemes to promote circular-economy measures (design for recyclability, minimum recycled content, recovery targets, etc.).
Sector-specific Section 18 Notices (Government Notices) implement EPR for defined product streams and set concrete obligations and targets. Key Notices published 5 November 2020 include:
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GN 1185 — Electrical & Electronic Equipment (EEE)/WEEE sector (with Annexure targets for annual collection/recycling tonnages).
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GN 1186 — Lighting sector.
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GN 1187 — Paper, packaging and some single-use products (with multi-year product-design, collection and recycling percentage targets by material).
The Regulations also specify operational requirements for Producer Responsibility Organisations (PROs) (they must be structured as not-for-profit companies, register with DFFE, run schemes on behalf of producers, limit administration fees, maintain member registers and data systems) and set monitoring, reporting (to the South African Waste Information System / SAWIC), audit and enforcement provisions (including criminal offences and penalties).
DFFE has continued to amend and clarify the EPR legal instruments: the Department published proposed and actual amendments (for example notices in May 2023) which expanded/clarified scope and sector coverage (adding portable batteries, lubricant oils and pesticides among other technical clarifications), strengthened enforcement and addressed fee determination and free-rider issues. The EPR framework is also embedded in national policy such as the National Waste Management Strategy (NWMS 2020) which explicitly promotes EPR as a tool to enable a circular economy.
Facts and figures
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South Africa’s EPR rules were published in November 2020 and took practical effect in 2021, initially covering paper & packaging, electrical & electronic equipment and lighting; subsequent notices and amendments have extended the scope to include portable batteries, lubricant oils and pesticides. Under the EEE notice the Government set stepped-up collection/recycling targets of 36,000 tonnes in year 1 rising to ~103,000 tonnes in year 5, while the paper & packaging notice contains detailed, material-specific multi-year targets – for example glass packaging recycling targets rise from roughly 46% in year 1 to over 81% in year 5- and the Regulations require all producers and PROs to register with DFFE, to report annually to the South African Waste Information System, to finance and audit schemes, and to meet social and governance conditions (including support for informal waste pickers and caps on administration fees). Non-compliance is actionable under the Regulations, which set out offences and penalties.
Producer Responsibility Organization Coalition in South Africa:
