Recycling has been taking place in South Africa for more than three decades, driven by social and economic needs. While the waste hierarchy is embedded in national policy, an extensive legislative framework has made it more and more challenging for the public and private sector to remain compliant and competitive in a local and global market, and still drive waste away from landfill towards reuse, recycling and recovery. A local recycling economy, on par with many developed countries, is in part due to a large and active informal waste sector. In the absence of separation at source across South African cities and towns, informal waste pickers have been key to accessing resources which the private sector has struggled to access, due to gatekeeping by municipalities. The South African waste and recycling sector can be defined in terms of four main stages of development—“The Age of Landfilling”, “The Emergence of Recycling”, “The Flood of Regulation” and “The Drive for EPR”, and is currently standing on the brink of a fifth stage—“The future is a Circular Economy”. The low hanging fruit, the easy to collect and recycle products, has been reaped. Moving to higher diversion from landfill targets will require more investment by the private sector and by government in the future. The social, economic and environmental benefits of doing this are clear, but must be balanced against the cost that will ultimately be borne by society, as consumers.

Throughout the developed world, food is treated as a disposable commodity. Between a third and half of all food produced for human consumption globally is estimated to be wasted. However, attempts to quantify the actual magnitude of food wasted globally are constrained by limited data, particularly from developing countries. This article attempts to quantify total food waste generation (including both pre-consumer food losses, as well as post-consumer food waste) in South Africa. The estimates are based on available food supply data for South Africa and on estimates of average food waste generation at each step of the food supply chain for sub-Saharan Africa. The preliminary estimate of the magnitude of food waste generation in South Africa is in the order of 9.04 million tonnes per annum. On a per capita basis, overall food waste in South Africa in 2007 is estimated at 177 kg/capita/annum and consumption waste at 7 kg/capita/annum. However, these preliminary figures should be used with caution and are subject to verification through ongoing research.

Waste management is a social, economic, and environmental problem facing all African countries. If the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development is to be achieved, sustainable waste management approaches must be an environmental and public health imperative deserving political priority. Current reasons for the poor management of waste in Africa, include, amongst others, weak organizational structures; lack of appropriate skills; inadequate budgets; weak legislation; lack of enforcement; low public awareness; corruption, conflict; political instability; and lack of political will. At the heart of the problem, is a failure in governance. However, through these gaps, many social and technological innovations have emerged. Innovations that recognize the opportunity that waste provides as a secondary resource. Diverting waste away from dumpsites and landfills towards reuse, recycling and recovery can improve the livelihoods of thousands of informal waste reclaimers, while also creating new jobs and business opportunities for the continent. Reintroducing secondary resources such as polymer, fiber, metals and nutrients back into local value chains has the potential to strengthen manufacturing economies and reduce the economic burden on product imports. Bringing waste under control in Africa and unlocking the opportunities that “waste” provides as “resource” will require immediate intervention by government, business and civil society.

Domestic solid waste is rapidly increasing due to accelerated population growth and urbanization. Improper waste disposal poses potential health risks and environmental concerns. Here, we investigated waste disposal practices in relation to household/dwelling characteristics in South African low-income communities. Data for 2014 to 2019 from a community-orientated primary care program were analyzed using logistic regression. Families who reported living in a shack were more likely to dump waste in the street. Households who reported using non-electric sources of fuel for heating/cooking, those who lacked proper sanitation, and those who did not have access to piped water inside the dwelling were more likely to dispose of waste by dumping it in the street/in the yard or burying it. Families living in low-income settlements are at risk of solid waste exposure and this situation is exacerbated by poor access to piped water, proper sanitation, and electricity.

Food waste is becoming an important issue in light of population growth and global food security concerns. However, data on food wastage are limited, especially for developing countries. Global estimates suggest that households in developed countries waste more food than those in developing countries, but these estimates are based on assumptions that have not been tested. We therefore set out to present primary data relating to household food waste disposal for South Africa within the sub-Saharan African context. As the Gauteng Province contributes about 45% of the total municipal waste generated in South Africa, the case study area covers two of the large urban metropolitan municipalities in Gauteng, namely Ekurhuleni and Johannesburg, with a combined population of 8.33 million, representing nearly 15% of the South African population. Municipal solid waste characterisation studies using bulk sampling with randomised grab sub-sampling were undertaken over a 6-week period during summer in 2014 (Johannesburg) and 2016 (Ekurhuleni), covering a representative sample of the municipal waste collection routes from households in each of the two surveyed municipalities. The food waste component of the household waste (excluding garden waste) was 3% in Ekurhuleni and 7% in Johannesburg. The results indicate that an average of 0.48 kg (Ekurhuleni) and 0.69 kg (Johannesburg) of food waste (including inedible parts) is disposed of into the municipal bin per household per week in the two municipalities, respectively. This translates into per capita food waste disposal of 8 kg and 12 kg per annum, respectively, in South Africa as compared to the estimated 6–11 kg per annum in sub-Saharan Africa and South and Southeast Asia. Significance: Research on food waste in developing countries is limited. This study is the first of its kind undertaken in South Africa. Food waste research is important to address food security issues. This study provides evidence to support Sustainable Development Goal 12.3.

The aims of this study were to understand and to do a critical analysis of the different indigenous systems and practices of waste management to inform waste management policy development in Lesotho. To achieve these aims, the objective was to assess community perceptions of the impact of the indigenous systems and practices of solid waste management on the environment and human wellbeing. A simple random sampling method was employed. The primary data were collected through observations and survey questionnaires that were distributed among the communities in the study areas. The sample size was 693 participants from a total estimated population of 6917 in May 2021 in the Matsieng, Koro-Koro and Rothe constituencies. The data were analysed quantitatively by using the International Business Management Statistical Package for Social Science version 25.0. The descriptive method was used to interpret the results. For validity, the interview questions were set towards answering the study research questions. For reliability, open- and close-ended questions were designed. The research clearly indicated that indigenous systems and practices are culturally accepted in areas lacking formal waste collection services by the local authorities. The tradition, culture, values, and belief of the communities play a major role in the systems and practices implemented. Although some people convert waste items into useful products, the practices of general disposal were often unsafe from the human wellbeing and environmental perspectives. In Lesotho, a lack of awareness about conservation and sustainable use of natural resources could be attributed to flawed education at the grassroots level in schools.